Category Physics

LISA pathfinder mission will prepare the way for us to study violent events that we’ve never seen before – such as the creation of massive black holes. The probe is to test technology needed to launch another mission, eLISA, in 2034, which will aim to detect gravitational waves. Intriguingly, the project may also help us prove some of the most extreme aspects of 3Einstein’s theory of general relativity.

Defn: General relativity states that gravity is just a manifestation of the fact that mass causes the surrounding space to curve, and it is the curvature of space that dictates the path followed by any other object, or indeed by light...

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Skyrmions are non-coplanar swirling field textures. Ferroelectrics convert changes in mechanical energy into electrical energy and vice versa...

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Q-carbon is distinct from known phases of graphite and diamond. They have also developed a technique for using Q-carbon to make diamond-related structures at room temperature and at ambient atmospheric pressure in air. “We’ve now created a third solid phase of carbon,” says Prof. Jay Narayan. “The only place it may be found in the natural world would be possibly in the core of some planets.”

Q-carbon has some unusual characteristics
~It is ferromagnetic -other solid forms of carbon are not.
“We didn’t even think that was possible,” Narayan says.
~It is harder than diamond, and glows when exposed to even low levels of energy.
~”Q-carbon’s strength and low work-function – its willingness to release el...

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Supercapacitors can be charged and discharged tens of thousands of times, but their low energy density compared to conventional batteries limits their application for energy storage. Now, A*STAR researchers in Singapore have developed an ‘asymmetric’ supercapacitor based on metal nitrides and graphene that could be a viable energy storage solution.

A supercapacitor’s viability is largely determined by materials its anodes and cathodes are comprised...

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