Physics and Matter News Archives Page 9

ISIS Second Target station - protons on target! (12/21/2007)

The ISIS Second Target Station Project at the STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire achieved a major milestone on Friday 14 December, at the first attempt and two days ahead of schedule. Protons were successfully extracted into the new proton transfer beamline from the existing ISIS accelerator and delivered to the new target station. ...> Full Article

Hybrid semiconductors show zero thermal expansion, could lead to hardier electronics and optoelectronics (12/20/2007)

The fan in your computer is there to keep the microprocessor chip from heating to the point where its component materials start to expand, inducing cracks that interrupt the flow of electricity - and not incidentally, ruin the chip. Thermal expansion can also separate semiconducting materials from the substrate, reduce performance through changes in the electronic structure of the material or warp the delicate structures that emit laser light. ...> Full Article

Metal Foam Has a Good Memory (12/19/2007)

In the world of commercial materials, lighter and cheaper is usually better, especially when those attributes are coupled with superior strength and special properties, such as a material's ability to remember its original shape after it's been deformed by a physical or magnetic force. ...> Full Article

Reversible Data Transfers from Light to Sound (12/17/2007)

New experiments address a barrier to efforts at developing computer networks that can run on light instead of electrons ...> Full Article

Project to look at best way to find defects in aircraft and racing cars (12/15/2007)

An Anglo-Indian initiative is to be launched to look at the efficiency of new ways of detecting dangerous defects in vehicles including aircraft, racing cars and spacecraft. ...> Full Article

Light is shed on new fibre's potential to change technology (12/14/2007)

Photonic crystal fibre's ability to create broad spectra of light, which will be the basis for important developments in technology, has been explained for the first time in an article in the leading science journal Nature-Photonics. ...> Full Article

Scientists make a quantum leap in research (12/13/2007)

Researchers have made the first ever execution of a quantum calculation, a major step towards building the first quantum computers. ...> Full Article

Sunshine-to-Petrol Project Seeks Fuel From Thin Air (12/12/2007)

Using concentrated solar energy to reverse combustion, a research team from Sandia National Laboratories is building a prototype device intended to chemically "reenergize" carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide using concentrated solar power. The carbon monoxide could then be used to make hydrogen or serve as a building block to synthesize a liquid combustible fuel, such as methanol or even gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. ...> Full Article

Ultrafast optical shutter is switched entirely by laser light (12/8/2007)

A new study reports that a laser can be used to switch a film of vanadium dioxide back and forth between reflective and transparent states without heating or cooling it. ...> Full Article

Researchers Announce First Observation of 'Persistent Flow' in a Gas (12/5/2007)

Using laser light to stir an ultracold gas of atoms, researchers have demonstrated the first 'persistent' current in an ultracold atomic gas -a frictionless flow of particles. This relatively long-lived flow, a hallmark of a special property known as 'superfluidity,' might help bring to the surface some deep physics insights, and enable super-sensitive rotation sensors that could someday make navigation more precise. ...> Full Article

Researchers advance process to manufacture silicon chips (12/4/2007)

The next generation of laptops, desk computers, cell phones and other semiconductor devices may get faster and more cost-effective with research from Clemson University. ...> Full Article

Blue dye could hold the key to super processing power (11/30/2007)

A technique for controlling the magnetic properties of a commonly used blue dye could revolutionise computer processing power, according to research published recently in Advanced Materials. ...> Full Article

Scientists Report First Findings On Key Astrophysics Problem (11/29/2007)

In a paper published recently in the journal Nature Physics, an international team of space scientists led by researchers from the University of New Hampshire present findings on the first experimental evidence that points in a new direction toward the solution of a longstanding, central problem of plasma astrophysics and space physics. ...> Full Article

Researchers Examine Einstein's Theories (11/28/2007)

Einstein's self-proclaimed "biggest blunder" - his postulation of a cosmological constant (a force that opposes gravity and keeps the universe from collapsing) - may not be such a blunder after all, according to the research of an international team of scientists that includes two Texas A&M University researchers. ...> Full Article

Major advances made in predicting crystal structures (11/27/2007)

Findings of international test have implications for pharmaceutical development. ...> Full Article

Scientists use unique diamond anvils to view oxide glass structures under pressure (11/22/2007)

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have used a uniquely constructed perforated diamond cell to investigate oxide glass structures at high pressures in unprecedented detail. ...> Full Article

Thermoelectric materials are one key to energy savings (11/21/2007)

Breathing new life into an old idea, MIT Institute Professor Mildred S. Dresselhaus and co-workers are developing innovative materials for controlling temperatures that could lead to substantial energy savings by allowing more efficient car engines, photovoltaic cells and electronic devices. ...> Full Article

Theoretical physicist says polymers in a vacuum may yield valuable data (11/16/2007)

A theoretical analysis of polymer behavior suggests that large molecules should behave very differently when they are in a vacuum than when in solution. The finding suggests that with better understanding of the physics involved, analysis techniques that operate in vacuums--such as mass spectrometry and studies of organic molecules in space--could yield far more information than they do now. ...> Full Article

Gamma 'glow' takes guess work out of opal mining (11/15/2007)

The sale of opals contributes $500 million to the Australian economy each year, yet up until now, finding the buried treasures has largely been a question of luck and perseverance for miners. A new technique capitalizes on natural radiation emitted by the opals to dramatically improve the detection process. ...> Full Article

Chemists Create Novel Uranium Molecule (11/14/2007)

Chemists have prepared the first uranium methylidyne molecule ever reported, despite the reactivity of uranium atoms with other molecules. This new molecule is a hydrocarbon containing a uranium-carbon triple-bond. ...> Full Article

The World's Smallest Double Slit Experiment: Breaking up the Hydrogen Molecule (11/12/2007)

The big world of classical physics mostly seems sensible: waves are waves and particles are particles, and the moon rises whether anyone watches or not. The tiny quantum world is different: particles are waves (and vice versa), and quantum systems remain in a state of multiple possibilities until they are measured â€" which amounts to an intrusion by an observer from the big world â€" and forced to choose: the exact position or momentum of an electron, say. ...> Full Article

Young's experiment in a hydrogen molecule (11/11/2007)

According to the authors the research could prove to be of great importance for the future development of quantum computation. The experiment illustrates the transition between the quantum and the macroscopic worlds. Conclusions appear in the latest issue of Science. ...> Full Article

St Andrews and Cornell join forces in condensed matter physics (11/10/2007)

The University of St. Andrews is delighted to announce the appointment of Professor Séamus Davis of Cornell University to a SUPA Distinguished Research Professorship. ...> Full Article

Physicists See Similarities In Stream Of Sand Grains, Exotic Plasma At Birth Of Universe (11/9/2007)

Streams of granular particles bouncing off a target in a simple tabletop experiment produce liquid-like behavior also witnessed in a massive research apparatus that simulates the birth of the universe. ...> Full Article

Repair work continues at Penn State Breazeale Reactor (11/7/2007)

Work continues on repairs to the pool at Penn State's Breazeale Reactor where contractors last week inspected the walls of the south end of the pool and made repairs to the divider wall that separates the two portions of the pool. ...> Full Article

Heavier hydrogen on the atomic scale reduces friction (11/5/2007)

Scientists may be one step closer to understanding the atomic forces that cause friction, thanks to a recently published study by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Houston and the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory. ...> Full Article

Researchers test experimental new magnet that reaches levels 500,000 times earths magnetic field (11/4/2007)

Engineers at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory at Florida State University have successfully tested a groundbreaking new magnet design that could literally shed new light on nanoscience and semiconductor research. ...> Full Article

Using Supercomputers To Make Safer Nuclear Reactors (11/3/2007)

Rensselaer researcher will lead $3 million DoE study to improve safety of tomorrow’s reactors ...> Full Article

Physicists Show How Electrons 'Gain Weight' in Metal Compounds Near Absolute Zero Temperature (11/2/2007)

Computer Simulations May Provide Clues to Understanding Superconductivity and Fabricating New Superconducting Materials ...> Full Article

Video shows buckyballs form by 'shrink wrapping' (10/29/2007)

Experiments, simulations reveal birth secret of tiny carbon spheres ...> Full Article