Category Physics

The single-atom transistor that works in a gel electrolyte reaches the limit of miniaturization.
Credit: Group of Professor Thomas Schimmel/KIT

Milestone of energy efficiency in information technology. At Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), physicist Professor Thomas Schimmel and his team have developed a single-atom transistor, the world’s smallest. This quantum electronics component switches electrical current by controlled repositioning of a single atom, now also in the solid state in a gel electrolyte. The single-atom transistor works at room temperature and consumes very little energy, which opens up entirely new perspectives for information technology. The transistor is presented in Advanced Materials.

Digitization results in a high energy consumption...

This is a nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamond with two crossed wires for holonomic quantum gates over the geometric spin qubit with a polarized microwave. Credit: Image courtesy of Yokohama National University

Researchers show holonomic quantum gates under zero-magnetic field at room temperature, which will enable the realization of fast and fault-tolerant universal quantum computers. A quantum computer is a powerful machine with the potential to solve complex problems much faster than today’s conventional computer can. Researchers are currently working on the next step in quantum computing: building a universal quantum computer.

The paper, published in the journal Nature Communications, reports experimental demonstration of non-adiabatic and non-abelian holonomic quantum gates over a ...

Scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles present research on a curious cosmic phenomenon known as “whistlers” — very low frequency packets of radio waves that race along magnetic field lines. Appearing in the Physics of Plasmas, the study provides new insights into the nature of whistlers and space plasmas and could one day aid in the development of practical plasma technologies with magnetic fields, including spacecraft thrusters that use charged particles as fuel. This image shows the growth of a whistler mode with circular phase front and cross-field propagation.

A new study sheds light on how ultralow frequency radio waves and plasmas interact...

This is the device compared to a US dollar coin.
Credit: Zhenlong Huang

By stacking and connecting layers of stretchable circuits on top of one another, engineers have developed an approach to build soft, pliable “3D stretchable electronics” that can pack a lot of functions while staying thin and small in size. The work is published in the Aug. 13 issue of Nature Electronics.

As a proof of concept, a team led by the University of California San Diego has built a stretchable electronic patch that can be worn on the skin like a bandage and used to wirelessly monitor a variety of physical and electrical signals, from respiration, to body motion, to temperature, to eye movement, to heart and brain activity. The device, which is as small and thick as a U.S...