Category Physics

In this artistic rendering, a magnetic pulse (right) and X-ray laser light (left) converge on a high-temperature superconductor to study the behavior of its electrons. (SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)

A team has combined powerful magnetic pulses with some of the brightest X-rays on the planet to discover a surprising 3D arrangement of a material’s electrons that appears closely linked to a mysterious phenomenon known as high-temperature superconductivity. It also resolves an apparent mismatch in data from previous experiments and charts a new course for fully mapping the behaviors of electrons in these exotic materials under different conditions.

“This was totally unexpected, and also very exciting…Nobody had seen this 3D picture before,” said Jun-Sik Lee, at SLAC...

This is a UHFSine photo of the layers created by Sine waves. Credit: Brian Patchett/Utah Valley University

Physicists are literally applying rocket science to the field of medical diagnostics. With a few key changes, the researchers used a noninvasive ultrasonic technique originally developed to detect microscopic flaws in solid fuel rockets to successfully detect cell stiffness changes associated with certain cancers and other diseases. The method uses sound waves to manipulate and probe cells.

The method combines a low-frequency ultrasonic wave to levitate the cells and confine them to a single layer within a fluid and a high-frequency ultrasonic wave to measure the cell’s stiffness. “An acoustic wave is a pressure wave so it travels as a wave of high and low pressure...

An advance in the storage of concentrated solar thermal energy may reduce reduce its cost and make it more practical for wider use. Credit: Graphic by Kelvin Randhir, courtesy of the University of Florida

New approach for storage of concentrated solar thermal energy has been found, to reduce cost and make it more practical for wider use. The advance is based on thermochemical storage, in which chemical transformation is used in repeated cycles to hold heat, use it to drive turbines, and then be re-heated to continue the cycle. Most commonly this might be done over a 24 hour period, with variable levels of solar-powered electricity available at any time of day, as dictated by demand.

Conceptually, all of the energy produced could be stored indefinitely and used later when the electricity is...

This is a drawing of boron doped graphine. Credit: Torones, Penn State

An international team of researchers, led by Penn State, has developed ultrasensitive gas sensors based on the infusion of boron atoms into graphene. The researchers are from 6 countries and includes the 2010 Noble laureate and graphene pioneer Konstantin Novoselov, and Morinobu Endo, the discoverer of carbon nanotubes.

Graphene is well known for strength and ability to transport electrons at high speed, but it is also a highly sensitive gas sensor. By adding boron atoms, the boron graphene (BG) sensors were able to detect noxious gas molecules at extremely low concentrations, parts per billion in the case of nitrogen oxides and parts per million for ammonia, the two gases tested to date...