Category Physics

a) Maximum magnetic field Bc2 (normalized) at which superconductivity can survive versus temperature T. Filled circles are data taken from MoS2 thin films. Without taking into account internal magnetic fields generated by the lattice structure of MoS2, Bc2 cannot exceed 1. b) Taking into account the internal magnetic fields, the experimental data can be well explained theoretically. Credit: The Physics Department, HKUST

Superconductivity is a fascinating quantum phenomenon in which electrons form pairs and flow with 0 resistance. However, strong enough magnetic field can break electron pairs and destroy superconductivity. Surprisingly, experimental groups led by Prof. Ye and Prof...

This schematic shows the concept behind the team’s plant-inspired microrobot. Credit: Image courtesy of American Physical Society’s Division of Fluid Dynamics

The future of bio-inspired engineering or robotics will greatly benefit from lessons learned from plants eg tiny robots powered exclusively by changes in humidity. To generate motion, plants and some seeds – such as mimosa leaves, Venus flytraps and pine cones – simply harness the supply or deprival of water from plant tissues.

“Some seeds consist of a head that contains all its genetic information, along with a long appendage called an ‘awn’ that is responsible for locomotion – just like an animal’s sperm,” explained Prof Ho-Young Kim...

Atoms (shown in green and blue) are held in a trap of laser light (red) in which they can move in one dimension only. The atoms can point either up (green) or down (blue), similar to a needle in a compass. When the atoms do not interact, they can move freely in the trap (top picture); they have no discernible order. When repulsive interactions between the atoms are strong (bottom picture), they arrange themselves in the trap, with each atom pointing in the opposite direction of its neighbour.

Physicists have used ultracold atoms to imitate the behavior of electrons in a solid. Researchers have devised a new way to study the phenomenon of magnetism...

Concept of an asteroid redirect mission (NASA)

The grizzled asteroid miner was a stock character in science fiction. Now, a couple of recent events – one legal and the other technological – have brought asteroid mining a step closer to reality. The legal step was taken when the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee passed a bill titled H.R. 2262–SPACE Act of 2015. The bill has a number of measures designed to facilitate commercial space development, including a provision that gives individuals or companies ownership of any material that they mine in outer space, a trillion-dollar market.

The technological development is a new generation of gamma-ray spectroscope that appears perfectly suited for detecting veins of gold, platinum, rare earths and other valuable material hidd...