Category Physics

Schematic of a quantum network: single photons transmit quantum information between the network nodes, where they are stored in an atomic gas. (Illustration: University of Basel, Department of Physics)

Physicists from the University of Basel have developed a memory that can store photons. These quantum particles travel at the speed of light and are thus suitable for high-speed data transfer. The researchers were able to store them in an atomic vapor and read them out again later without altering their quantum mechanical properties too much. This memory technology is simple and fast and it could find application in a future quantum Internet.

Even today, fast data transfer in telecommunication networks employs short light pulses...

In a so-called target chamber, the light pulse of the high-performance laser DRACO hits a gas-jet. The aim is to accelerate electrons to almost the speed of light on a distance shorter than a pencil’s width. Credit: HZDR / F. Bierstedt

Optimum conditions for Laser Plasma acceleration. Conventional electron accelerators have become an indispensable tool in modern research. The extremely bright radiation generated by synchrotrons, or free electron lasers, provides us with unique insights into matter at the atomic level. But even the smallest versions of these super microscopes are the size of a soccer field. Laser plasma acceleration could offer an alternative: with a much smaller footprint and much higher peak currents it could be the basis for the next generation of compact light sources...

Various configurations of oxygen adsorption with corresponding energies. (a) Sulphur, molybdenum, and oxygen are represented by yellow, blue, and red spheres, respectively. The sulphur vacancy site is represented by the cross. (b) Nudged elastic band calculation of the energy barrier for migration of an oxygen molecule towards a sulphur vacancy and respective trapping. The energy barrier, measured from the starting point, is 56 meV. The calculation was performed in the spin-averaged state. (c) Calculated ionization levels for relevant defects (all energies are in eV). VBM and CBM refer to the valence band maximum and conduction band minima, respectively. (d) Representation of the charge density of the trapped electrons at sulfur vacancies.

National University of Singapore (NUS) researchers...

Mechanical properties of atomically thin boron nitride and the role of interlayer interactions. Nature Communications, 2017; 8: 15815 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms15815

A stretchy miracle material has been discovered that could be used to create highly resistant smart devices and scratch-proof paint for cars. Led by Dr Elton Santos from the University’s School of Mathematics and Physics, an international team have found superlubricity in a few layers of graphene – a concept where friction vanishes or very nearly vanishes. They also found that a few layers of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) are as strong as diamond but are more flexible, cheaper and lighter...