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    Category Physics

    Quantum Matter Stuck in Unrest

    August 1, 2015, Categories  Physics

    Schematic illustration of the experiment. An initial density modualtion is imprinted onto the ultracold atoms held in the optical lattice potential (1). Without any disorder, the density modulation is washed out completely in the ensuing dynamics, indicating relaxation towards a thermal equilibrium state (2). In the presence of sufficiently strong disorder, the researchers find that even for long evolution times the system retains memory of the initial state, indicating a non-thermal state in which the system remains stuck (3). Credit: M. Schreiber, LMU

    Schematic illustration of the experiment. An initial density modualtion is imprinted onto the ultracold atoms held in the optical lattice potential (1). Without any disorder, the density modulation is washed out completely in the ensuing dynamics, indicating relaxation towards a thermal equilibrium state (2). In the presence of sufficiently strong disorder, the researchers find that even for long evolution times the system retains memory of the initial state, indicating a non-thermal state in which the system remains stuck (3). Credit: M. Schreiber, LMU

    Using ultracold atoms trapped in light crystals, scientists have observed a novel state of matter that never thermalizes...

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    Novel Robotic Insects Mimic Extreme Locomotion Mechanics of the Water Strider that enable it to launch off water surface

    August 1, 2015, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics, Environment/Geology

     

    Walking on water might sound supernatural, but in fact it is a quite natural phenomenon. Many small creatures use water’s surface tension to maneuver around. One of the most complex maneuvers, jumping on water, is achieved by a species of semi-aquatic insects called water striders that not only skim along water’s surface but also generate enough upward thrust with their legs to launch themselves airborne from it.

    Now, emulating this natural form of water-based locomotion, an international team of scientists from Seoul National University (SNU), Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, and Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, has unveiled a novel robotic insect that can jump off of water’s surface...

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    Metal Organic Frameworks (MOFs) are proving incredibly Flexible

    July 31, 2015, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics

    Over time, the zinc ions in MOF-5 (pink solutions) get replaced with cobalt ions, (blue solutions) demonstrating the dynamics of metal organic frameworks. Credit: American Chemical Society.

    Over time, the zinc ions in MOF-5 (pink solutions) get replaced with cobalt ions, (blue solutions) demonstrating the dynamics of metal organic frameworks. Credit: American Chemical Society.

    MOF’s have many potential apps: antimicrobial agents, H-storage materials and solar-cell components.

    Despite their rigid-sounding name, MOF structures are also dynamic – much more so than previously thought. This discovery could lead to the synthesis of brand-new types of materials. As the name implies, MOFs are composed of networks of organic (carbon-based) compounds interspersed with metal ions. Many different combinations of metals and organic components exist, but much of what we know about these systems comes from a zinc and benzene di-acid framework called MOF5...

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    Researchers create World’s Highest-Performance Single-Molecule Diode

    July 30, 2015, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics

    Major milestone in molecular electronics. Berkeley Lab and Columbia Uni team used a combination of gold electrodes and an ionic solution to create a single-molecule diode that outperforms the best of its predecessors by a factor of 50.

    “Using a single symmetric molecule, an ionic solution and two gold electrodes of dramatically different exposed surface areas, we were able to create a diode that resulted in a rectification ratio, the ratio of forward to reverse current at fixed voltage, in excess of 200, which is a record for single-molecule devices,” says Jeff Neaton, Director of the Molecular Foundry. “The asymmetry necessary for diode behavior originates with the different exposed electrode areas and the ionic solution,” he says...

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