Category Physics

Jean-Phillipe MacLean works in his lab. Credit: Image courtesy of University of Waterloo

Scientists at the Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC) at the University of Waterloo have captured the first images of ultrafast photons that are energy-time entangled. The new technique will have direct applications for quantum cryptography and communication protocols, including the possibility for establishing highly secure communication channels over long distances. “This technique will allow us to explore all sorts of quantum effects that were inaccessible because the detectors were simply too slow,” said Jean-Philippe MacLean, lead author of the study and a PhD candidate in the Department of Physics and Astronomy in the Faculty of Science.

To capture one of the shortest quantum events possible, t...

Nanoscale chiral valley-photon interface through optical spin-orbit coupling. Researchers from TU Delft combine spintronics and nanophotonics in 2D material Delft University of Technology

Spintronics is an emerging field in which the spin of electrons, rather than the charge, is used to process data. Unfortunately, the spin only lasts for a very short time, making it difficult to exploit in electronics. Researchers from the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience at TU Delft, working with the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research’s AMOLF institute, have now found a way to convert spin information into a predictable light signal at room temperature...

Blue Waters numerical relativity simulation of two colliding black holes with the open source, numerical relativity software, the Einstein Toolkit. Authors: R. Haas and E. Huerta (NCSA/University of Illinois); Visualization: R. Haas.

Scientists at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA), at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, have pioneered the use of GPU-accelerated deep learning for rapid detection and characterization of gravitational waves. This new approach will enable astronomers to study gravitational waves using minimal computational resources, reducing time to discovery and increasing the scientific reach of gravitational wave astrophysics. This innovative research was recently published in Physics Letters B.

Combining deep learning algorithms, numer...

Student Erich Nygaard is depicted as a 3-D volumetric image, mimicking the popular Princess Leia hologram. Credit: Dan Smalley Lab

Nature study outlines method to make the images of science fiction. In the original Star Wars film, R2D2 projects an image of Princess Leia in distress. The iconic scene includes the line still famous 40 years later: “Help me Obi Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope.” BYU electrical and computer engineering professor and holography expert Daniel Smalley has long had a goal to create the same type of 3D image projection. In a paper published this week in Nature, Smalley details the method he has developed to do so. “We refer to this colloquially as the Princess Leia project,” Smalley said...