Category Physics

The STAR detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider tracks thousands of particles produced in collisions of heavy ions such as gold, as shown in the colorful particle tracks on the right-hand side of the image. In collisions of polarized protons at RHIC, STAR is also seeing hints of an effect of a different kind of color — the “color” charges of the quarks that make up the colliding protons. Credit: Brookhaven National Laboratory

The proton sounds like a simple object, but it’s not. Inside, there’s a teeming microcosm of quarks and gluons with properties such as spin and “color” charge that contribute to the particle’s seemingly simplistic role as a building block of visible matter...

Afsaneh Rabiei examines a sample of metal foam. A new study by Rabiei finds that novel light-weight composite metal foams are significantly more effective at insulating against high heat than the conventional base metals and alloys that they’re made of, such as steel. The finding means the CMF is especially promising for use in storing and transporting nuclear material, hazardous materials, explosives and other heat-sensitive materials, as well as for space exploration. Credit: North Carolina State University

Novel light-weight composite metal foams are more effective at insulating against high heat than the conventional base metals and alloys that they’re made of, such as steel...

Sandia National Laboratories researcher Todd Monson and his colleagues have demonstrated the fabrication of iron nitride transformers in power-conversion test beds. Credit: Photo by Randy Montoya

Iron nitride Transformers could boost energy storage options. A Sandia-led team has developed a way to make a magnetic material that could lead to lighter and smaller, cheaper and better-performing high-frequency transformers, needed for more flexible energy storage systems and widespread adoption of renewable energy. Transportable energy storage and power conversion systems, which can fit inside a single semi-trailer, could make it cost effective to rapidly install solar, wind and geothermal energy systems in even the most remote locations.

“Such modular systems could be deployed quickly to multi...

An artist’s rendering of the quantum Fredkin (controlled-SWAP) gate, powered by entanglement, operating on photonic qubits. Credit: Raj Patel and Geoff Pryde, Center for Quantum Dynamics, Griffith University.

The quantum circuit Fredkin gate has been experimentally realised for the first time. “Similar to building a huge wall out lots of small bricks, large quantum circuits require very many logic gates to function. However, if larger bricks are used the same wall could be built with far fewer bricks,” said Dr Patel. “We demonstrate in our experiment how one can build larger quantum circuits in a more direct way without using small logic gates.”

At present, even small and medium scale quantum computer circuits cannot be produced because of the requirement to integrate so many of these gate...