Physics

Researchers discover a topological bulk effect for high performance lasing

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Recently, researchers at Peking University have discovered a new type of reflection mechanism based on topological band-inversion, which opens a new paradigm of harvesting the topological effect for practical applications beyond the topological edge/interface states. Basing on this effect, they demonstrate a high-performance topological bulk laser, which works at room temperature and reaches the practical … Read more

Fine-tuning thermoelectric materials for cheaper renewable energy

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Researchers from Queen Mary University of London have developed new thermoelectric materials, which could provide a low-cost option for converting heat energy into electricity. Materials known as halide perovskites have been proposed as affordable alternatives to existing thermoelectric materials, however so far research into their suitability for thermoelectric applications has been limited. In this study, … Read more

Chinese team makes nanoscopy breakthrough

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A Chinese research team has developed an advanced imaging technique to achieve super-resolution microscopy at unprecedented speeds and with many fewer images. The new method should make it possible to capture processes in living cells at speeds not previously possible. Super-resolution techniques, often called nanoscopy, achieve nanoscale resolution by overcoming the diffraction limit of light. … Read more

Cheers! Maxwell’s electromagnetism extended to smaller scales

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More than one hundred and fifty years have passed since the publication of James Clerk Maxwell’s “A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field” (1865). What would our lives be without this publication? It is difficult to imagine, as this treatise revolutionized our fundamental understanding of electric fields, magnetic fields, and light. The twenty original equations … Read more

Can we develop computer chips that run on light?

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Just beyond the horizon of practicality, researchers are trying to develop a new generation of chips that would control photons as reliably as today’s chips control electrons. But after years of effort they’re still grappling with a crucial step: identifying the best material to trap and tame light. Jelena Vuckovic has already devoted some 20 … Read more

Communications device offers huge bandwidth potential

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Scientists at the University of Illinois have created sugar cube-sized blocks of an electromagnetic material with potential to transform communication networks. Several countries are building futuristic communication systems using higher frequency electromagnetic waves to transfer more data at faster rates, but they have lacked network components to handle these higher bandwidths. Researcher J. Gary Eden … Read more

Twisted “light keys” decrypting holographic “locks”

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The first ultra-broadband holographic technique in the world Imagine a scenario like this: your friend and you received a same encrypted holographic file. Using different “light keys”, you decoded the file. Suddenly, Michael Jackson popped in front of you and was singing the “Moon Walk” song. In the meantime, your friend has already been immersed … Read more

How to induce magnetism in graphene

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Graphene, a two-dimensional structure made of carbon, is a material with excellent mechanical, electronic and optical properties. However, it did not seem suitable for magnetic applications. Together with international partners, Empa researchers have now succeeded in synthesizing a unique nanographene predicted in the 1970s, which conclusively demonstrates that carbon in very specific forms has magnetic … Read more