http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/matter_energy/physics/ Physics News and Research. Why is the universe more partial to matter than antimatter? How could fuel cells be more efficient? Read current science articles on physics. en-us Wed, 10 Feb 2010 04:05:01 EST Wed, 10 Feb 2010 04:05:01 EST 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/matter_energy/physics/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100209091840.htm Scientists have observed electrons in a semiconductor on the brink of the metal-insulator transition for the first time. Caught in the act, the electrons formed complex patterns resembling those seen in turbulent fluids, confirming some long-held predictions and providing new insights into how semiconductors can be turned into magnets. The work also could lead to the production of smaller and more energy-efficient computers. Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100209091840.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100202101241.htm Considerable progresses made in controlling quantum gases open up a new avenue to study chemical processes. An Austrian research team has now succeeded in directly observing chemical exchange processes in an ultra-cold sample of cesium atoms and Feshbach molecules. Tue, 09 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100202101241.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100204204321.htm Physicists have built an enhanced version of an experimental atomic clock based on a single aluminum atom that is now the world's most precise clock, more than twice as precise as the previous pacesetter based on a mercury atom. The new aluminum clock would neither gain nor lose one second in about 3.7 billion years. Mon, 08 Feb 2010 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100204204321.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100209182405.htm The nucleus of one form of carbon is much larger and more stable than expected. Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100209182405.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100202103446.htm Scientists in Germany have succeeded in developing a method for treating the surface of nanoparticles which greatly improves the efficiency of organic solar cells. The researchers were able to attain an efficiency of 2 percent by using so-called quantum dots composed of cadmium selenide. These measurements, well above the previous efficiency ratings of 1 to 1.8 percent, were confirmed. Sun, 07 Feb 2010 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100202103446.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100205162953.htm A major hurdle in the ambitious quest to design and construct a radically new kind of quantum computer has been finding a way to manipulate the single electrons that very likely will constitute the new machines' processing components or "qubits." Now, a physicist has discovered how to do just that -- demonstrating a method that alters the properties of a lone electron without disturbing the trillions of electrons in its immediate surroundings. The feat is essential to the development of future varieties of superfast computers with near-limitless capacities for data. Sat, 06 Feb 2010 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100205162953.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100204144555.htm Researchers have demonstrated the first laser built from germanium that can emit wavelengths of light useful for optical communications. It's also the first germanium laser to operate at room temperature. Unlike the materials typically used in lasers, germanium is easy to incorporate into existing processes for manufacturing silicon chips. So the result could prove an important step toward computers that move data -- and maybe even perform calculations -- using light instead of electricity. Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100204144555.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100203161430.htm Scientists researching how nanomaterials align have found a way to use gold nanorods as orientation sensors by combining their plasmonic properties with polarization imaging techniques. Fri, 05 Feb 2010 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100203161430.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100203131356.htm Chemists have made a major contribution to the emerging field of quantum biology, observing quantum mechanics at work in photosynthesis in marine algae. Thu, 04 Feb 2010 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100203131356.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100202151053.htm An international team of researchers has identified a new theoretical approach that may one day make the synthesis of hydrogen fuel storage materials less complicated and improve the thermodynamics and reversibility of the system. Wed, 03 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100202151053.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100131215530.htm Researchers have produced 100mm diameter graphene wafers, a key milestone in the development of graphene for next generation high frequency electronic devices. Graphene is a 2-dimensional layer of tightly bound carbon atoms arranged in hexagonal arrays. Sheets of graphene are the building blocks of graphite. Due to its phenomenal electronic properties, graphene has been considered as a leading material for next generation electronic devices in the multibillion dollar semiconductor industry. Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100131215530.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100129092606.htm With new, advanced equipment, scientists have shown that materials to produce micro-and nanocomponents react very differently depending on whether crystals are large or small. This research creates important knowledge that can be used to develop technologies aimed at the nanoproduction of micro-electro-mechanical systems such as digital microphones in mobile phones, miniature pressure sensors in water pumps and acceleration sensors in airbags. Mon, 01 Feb 2010 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100129092606.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100129121823.htm Scientists at the National Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have successfully delivered an historic level of laser energy -- more than 1 megajoule -- to a target in a few billionths of a second and demonstrated the target drive conditions required to achieve fusion ignition. Mon, 01 Feb 2010 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100129121823.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100129092408.htm A theoretical study of the phase behavior of liquid water at temperatures close to -100ºC has shown that the four possible scenarios identified to date are in fact specific cases in a more general model. Mon, 01 Feb 2010 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100129092408.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100127110419.htm A series of experiments studying complex plasmas is taking place on board the international space station ISS. Physicists from Germany will use these experiments to study fundamental structure forming processes to better understand what happens in liquids and solids. Sun, 31 Jan 2010 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100127110419.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100124162153.htm A new experiment that reproduces the magnetic fields of the Earth and other planets has yielded its first significant results. The findings confirm that its unique approach has some potential to be developed as a new way of creating a power-producing plant based on nuclear fusion -- the process that generates the sun's prodigious output of energy. Sat, 30 Jan 2010 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100124162153.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100129122442.htm The first experiments at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's National Ignition Facility (NIF) have demonstrated a unique physics effect that bodes well for NIF's success in generating a self-sustaining nuclear fusion reaction. In inertial confinement fusion experiments on NIF, the energy of 192 powerful laser beams is fired into a pencil-eraser-sized cylinder called a hohlraum, which contains a tiny spherical target filled with deuterium and tritium, two isotopes of hydrogen. Rocket-like compression of the fuel capsule forces the hydrogen nuclei to combine, or fuse, releasing many times more energy than the laser energy that was required to spark the reaction. Fri, 29 Jan 2010 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100129122442.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100128142128.htm Scientists have devised a way to explore how phase transitions -- changes of matter from one state to another without altering chemical makeup -- function in less than three dimensions and at the level of just a few atoms. Fri, 29 Jan 2010 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100128142128.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100128142133.htm Scientists have discovered new clues to how and why groups of atoms and molecules may favor less symmetrical and more complex, flexible geometric patterns. The answer relates to a familiar concept in physics -- entropy. The researchers literally first caught sight of the link by using magnetic "stick and ball" construction toys. Fri, 29 Jan 2010 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100128142133.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100126175921.htm Researchers have managed to speed up photons to seemingly faster-than-light speeds through a stack of materials by adding a single, strategically placed layer. Wed, 27 Jan 2010 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100126175921.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100124162143.htm When scientists discovered a new kind of laser that was generated by an electrically conducting plastic or polymer, no one could explain how it worked and some doubted it was real. Now, a decade later, researchers have found these "random lasers" occur because of natural, mirror-like cavities in the polymers, and they say such lasers may prove useful for diagnosing cancer. Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100124162143.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100121141057.htm To make thin films for semiconductors in electronic devices, layers of atoms must be grown in neat, crystalline sheets. But while some materials grow smooth crystals, others tend to develop bumps and defects -- a serious problem for thin-film manufacturing. Physicists shed new light on how atoms arrange themselves into thin films. Sun, 24 Jan 2010 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100121141057.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100120085346.htm For the first time the research world has managed to measure the energy that is used when a virus infects a cell. The aim is to find a way to reduce the amount of energy inside the virus and thereby ultimately find a medicine that can counteract infections. Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100120085346.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100119172846.htm A cosmologist has extended the relationship between the x-ray luminosity and the mass of galaxy clusters as measured by gravitational lensing, improving the reliability of mass measurements of much older, more distant, and smaller galactic structures. These refined measurements will benefit both the understanding of dark matter and the nature of dark energy as well. Thu, 21 Jan 2010 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100119172846.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100120085352.htm Scientists have discovered a new way in which high-energy radiation in water can release slow electrons. Free electrons play a major role in chemical processes. In particular, they might be responsible for causing radiation damage in organic tissue. Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100120085352.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100118232345.htm An exotic type of symmetry -- suggested by string theory and theories of high-energy particle physics, and also conjectured for electrons in solids under certain conditions -- has been observed experimentally for the first time. Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100118232345.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100118231646.htm A surprising discovery by researchers of electronic liquid crystal states in an iron-based, high-temperature superconductor is another step toward understanding superconductivity and using it in such applications as power transmission. Wed, 20 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100118231646.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100119111057.htm A collaborative research project has brought the world a step closer to producing a new material on which future nanotechnology could be based. Researchers have demonstrated how an incredible material, graphene, could hold the key to the future of high-speed electronics, such as micro-chips and touchscreen technology. Tue, 19 Jan 2010 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100119111057.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100119103557.htm Tripling the steps in a read cycle can significantly improve signal to noise ratios in quantum data storage. Tue, 19 Jan 2010 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100119103557.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100119103553.htm Researchers are using electric fields to manipulate the property of electrons known as "spin" to store data permanently. This principle could not only improve random access memory in computers, it could also revolutionize the next generation of electronic devices. Tue, 19 Jan 2010 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100119103553.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100110151331.htm In an important first for a promising new technology, scientists have used a quantum computer to calculate the precise energy of molecular hydrogen. This groundbreaking approach to molecular simulations could have profound implications not just for quantum chemistry, but also for a range of fields from cryptography to materials science. Thu, 14 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100110151331.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100112165249.htm Is there anybody out there? In one physicist's case, the question refers not to whether life exists elsewhere in the universe, but whether it exists in other universes outside of our own. Wed, 13 Jan 2010 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100112165249.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100111171853.htm Researchers have developed compact, mid-infrared laser diodes that generate more light than heat -- a breakthroughs in quantum cascade laser efficiency. Tue, 12 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100111171853.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100111091222.htm Physicists have finally managed to demonstrate quantum entanglement of spatially separated electrons in solid state circuitry. Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100111091222.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100109002316.htm New experiments on a recently discovered class of iron-based superconductors suggest that the ability of their electrons to conduct electricity without resistance is directly connected with the magnetic properties of those electrons. The results by U.S. and Chinese physicists bolster theories that high-temperature superconductivity in materials called "iron pnictides" arises from quantum magnetic fluctuations. Mon, 11 Jan 2010 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100109002316.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100109002326.htm Physicists may see data by late summer from a prototype for a $278 million NOvA neutrino experiment that can yield clues to the universe's mysteries. Construction is underway on a 220-ton "integration prototype" detector and a larger 14,000-ton detector, a project of Fermilab and University of Minnesota. Mon, 11 Jan 2010 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100109002326.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100106193221.htm Researchers have used a calcium ion to simulate a relativistic quantum particle, demonstrating a phenomenon that has not been directly observable so far: the Zitterbewegung. Fri, 08 Jan 2010 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100106193221.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100107143909.htm Researchers have for the first time observed a nanoscale symmetry hidden in solid state matter. They have measured the signatures of a symmetry showing the same attributes as the golden ratio famous from art and architecture. Thu, 07 Jan 2010 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100107143909.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100105143728.htm A breakthrough in discovering new millisecond pulsars is providing astronomers a greatly improved capability to use those natural cosmic tools to make the first direct detections of gravitational waves. Thu, 07 Jan 2010 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100105143728.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100106193446.htm Physicists are starting to see real data from the Large Hadron Collider, the planet's biggest science experiment. But it will still take years of study before the collider produces new, Nobel-winning physics. Thu, 07 Jan 2010 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100106193446.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100104151933.htm Astronomers have discovered a distant star that exploded when its center became so hot that matter and anti-matter particle pairs were created. Tue, 05 Jan 2010 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100104151933.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091210153657.htm Scientists are developing a way to control the Casimir force, a quantum mechanical force that attracts objects when they are only hundred nanometers apart. Fri, 01 Jan 2010 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091210153657.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091207151234.htm An ultra-high-resolution imaging technique using X-ray diffraction is a step closer to fulfilling its promise as a window on nanometer-scale structures in biological samples. Researchers report progress in applying an approach to "lensless" X-ray microscopy that they introduced one year ago, with the potential to yield insights for evolutionary biology and biotechnology. They have produced the first images, using this technique, of biological cells -- specifically the intriguing polyextremophile Deinococcus radiourans. Wed, 30 Dec 2009 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091207151234.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091222154740.htm Using a technique that provides detailed images of nanoscale structures, researchers have discovered changes in the collagen component of bone that directly relate to bone health. Wed, 30 Dec 2009 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091222154740.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228152348.htm Researchers have shown that certain combinations of elemental atoms have electronic signatures that mimic the electronic signatures of other elements. The findings could lead to much cheaper materials for widespread applications such as new sources of energy, methods of pollution abatement, and catalysts on which industrial nations depend heavily for chemical processing. Tue, 29 Dec 2009 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091228152348.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091205233544.htm Santa skeptics have long considered St. Nick's ability to deliver toys to the world's good girls and boys on Christmas Eve a scientific impossibility. But new research shows that Santa is able to make his appointed rounds through the pioneering use of cutting-edge science and technology. Thu, 24 Dec 2009 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091205233544.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091215141512.htm Physicists have begun looking deep into the Earth to study some of nature's weirdest particles -- neutrinos. Tue, 22 Dec 2009 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091215141512.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091218133309.htm A tiny sensor that exploits the same physics as the whispering gallery will help make nanotechnology safer. Tue, 22 Dec 2009 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091218133309.htm