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Nuclear reaction
In nuclear physics, a nuclear reaction is a process in which two nuclei or nuclear particles collide, to produce different products than the initial particles. In principle a reaction can involve more than two particles colliding, but such an event is exceptionally rare. If the particles collide and separate without changing, the process is called an elastic collision rather than a reaction. A nuclear reaction can be represented by an equation similar to a chemical equation, and balanced in an analogous manner. Nuclear decays can be represented in the same way.
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Matter & Energy News
September 11, 2025
Sep. 10, 2025 — Physicists have unveiled a new superconducting detector sensitive enough to hunt dark matter particles smaller than electrons. By capturing faint photon signals, the device pushes the search into uncharted ...
Sep. 10, 2025 — Researchers in Germany and Australia have created a simple but powerful tool to detect nanoplastics—tiny, invisible particles that can slip through skin and even the blood-brain barrier. Using an "optical sieve" test strip viewed under a regular ...
Sep. 9, 2025 — Artificial intelligence is consuming enormous amounts of energy, but researchers at the University of Florida have built a chip that could change everything by using light instead of electricity for a core AI function. By etching microscopic lenses ...
Sep. 5, 2025 — Scientists at the University of Tokyo have unveiled “gold quantum needles,” a newly discovered nanocluster structure formed under unusual synthesis conditions. Unlike typical spherical clusters, these elongated, pencil-shaped formations display ...
Sep. 5, 2025 — Scientists have created a transparent solar coating that turns ordinary windows into clean energy generators without affecting clarity. Using cholesteric liquid crystal layers, the coating redirects polarized sunlight to the window edges where solar ...
Sep. 5, 2025 — A hidden quantum geometry that distorts electron paths has finally been observed in real materials. This “quantum metric,” once thought purely theoretical, may revolutionize electronics, superconductivity, and ultrafast ...
Sep. 4, 2025 — A Japanese research team successfully harnessed E. coli to produce PDCA, a strong, biodegradable plastic alternative. Their method avoids toxic byproducts and achieves record production levels, overcoming key roadblocks with creative ...
Sep. 3, 2025 — Scientists at Northwestern University have developed a groundbreaking nickel-based catalyst that could transform the way the world recycles plastic. Instead of requiring tedious sorting, the catalyst selectively breaks down stubborn polyolefin ...
Sep. 2, 2025 — Scientists in Japan have uncovered a strange new behavior in “heavy” electrons — particles that act as if they carry far more mass than usual. These electrons were found to be entangled, sharing a deep quantum link, and doing so in ways tied ...
Aug. 29, 2025 — Quantum scientists in Innsbruck have taken a major leap toward building the internet of the future. Using a string of calcium ions and finely tuned lasers, they created quantum nodes capable of generating streams of entangled photons with 92% ...
Aug. 29, 2025 — Rice University physicists confirmed that flat electronic bands in kagome superconductors aren’t just theoretical, they actively shape superconductivity and magnetism. This breakthrough could guide the design of next-generation quantum materials ...
Aug. 29, 2025 — A Vermont research team has cracked a 90-year-old puzzle, creating a quantum version of the damped harmonic oscillator. By reformulating Lamb’s classical model, they showed how atomic vibrations can be fully described while preserving quantum ...
Latest Headlines
updated 12:56 pm ET
Sep. 9, 2025 — Saturn’s icy moon Enceladus has long fascinated scientists with its spectacular water plumes, which NASA’s Cassini spacecraft once revealed to contain organic molecules. Many hoped these ...
Sep. 7, 2025 — Physicists at the University of Colorado Boulder have created the first time crystal that humans can actually see, using liquid crystals that swirl into never-ending patterns when illuminated by ...
Sep. 4, 2025 — Scientists at Delft University of Technology have managed to watch a single atomic nucleus flip its magnetic state in real time. Using a scanning tunneling microscope, they indirectly read the ...
Aug. 31, 2025 — Astronomers at the University of Missouri, using the James Webb Space Telescope, have uncovered 300 unusually bright cosmic objects that may be some of the earliest galaxies ever formed. By applying ...
Aug. 28, 2025 — In just one afternoon, scientists used a nanoparticle “megalibrary” to find a catalyst that matches or exceeds iridium’s performance in hydrogen fuel production, at a fraction of the ...
Aug. 27, 2025 — While superconducting qubits are great at fast calculations, they struggle to store information for long periods. A team at Caltech has now developed a clever solution: converting quantum information ...
Aug. 27, 2025 — Researchers have developed a blueprint for weaving hopfions—complex, knot-like light structures—into repeating spacetime crystals. By exploiting two-color beams, they can generate ordered chains ...
Aug. 27, 2025 — Researchers in Germany have unveiled the Metafiber, a breakthrough device that allows ultra-precise, rapid, and compact control of light focus ...
Aug. 27, 2025 — Hydrogen fuel cells could power cars, devices, and homes with nothing but water as a byproduct—but platinum’s cost holds them back. Chinese researchers have now unveiled a breakthrough iron-based ...
Aug. 26, 2025 — A research team created a plant-inspired molecule that can store four charges using sunlight, a key step toward artificial photosynthesis. Unlike past attempts, it works with dimmer light, edging ...