This study comes from Prof. Duanduan Wan and Prof. Meng Xiao group at the School of Physics of Wuhan University. This work provides a simple while intuitive example by demonstrating with both theory and circuit experiments an “exceptional nexus” (“EX”), a higher-order exceptional point (HOEP). This HOEP is realized within only two coupled resonators with the aid of nonlinear gain. Moreover, such a HOEP exhibits an ultra-enhanced signal-to-noise ratio. The recent advances in non-Hermitian physics, such as sensitivity enhancement, skin…
Researchers have discovered a process that can contribute to the melting of ice shelves in the Antarctic. An international team of scientists found that adjacent ice shelves play a role in causing instability in others downstream. The study, led by the University of East Anglia in the UK, also identified that a small ocean gyre – a system of circulating ocean currents – next to the Thwaites Ice Shelf can impact the amount of glacial-meltwater flowing beneath it. When that gyre…
The use of light to produce transient phases in quantum materials is fast becoming a novel way to engineer new properties in them, such as the generation of superconductivity or nanoscale topological defects. However, visualizing the growth of a new phase in a solid is not easy, due in-part to the wide range of spatial and time scales involved in the process. Although in the last two decades scientists have explained light-induced phase transitions by invoking nanoscale dynamics, real space…
How can you trace a single diseased cell in an intact brain or a human heart? The search resembles looking for a needle in a haystack. The teams of Ali Ertürk at Helmholtz Munich and LMU Munich and Matthias Mann at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Martinsried near Munich have now developed a new technology named DISCO-MS that solves the problem. DISCO-MS uses robotics technology to obtain proteomics data from ‘sick’ cells precisely identified early in the disease….
Exploring a new way to teach robots, Princeton researchers have found that human-language descriptions of tools can accelerate the learning of a simulated robotic arm lifting and using a variety of tools. The results build on evidence that providing richer information during artificial intelligence (AI) training can make autonomous robots more adaptive to new situations, improving their safety and effectiveness. Adding descriptions of a tool’s form and function to the training process for the robot improved the robot’s ability to…
Molecular chirality means the geometrical property of molecules with broken mirror symmetry. Characterizing molecular chirality and understanding their roles in physiochemical situations has been important in broad research scope such as, biology, chemistry, and pharmaceutics. In general, molecular chirality can be analyzed using circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy, which measures absorption difference of left- and right- circularly polarized light (LCP and RCP). However, the signal or change resulted from the interaction is too low because of the scale mismatch of light…
With a multimodal microscope, the Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH) and three partners in the joint project PriMe want to make it possible to detect bacterial infestation using fast, marker-free, and contactless imaging. This could significant-ly accelerate the characterization and classification of bio-films – which is interesting for research and the clinical envi-ronment and diagnostics. Deciphering the composition of biofilms currently takes at least a day – an enormously long period for the clinical setting in which biofilms can be…
Honeybee venom has been used in traditional medicine for centuries as an anti-inflammatory. Only its main component, melittin, has been scientifically well researched. However, with its strong effect, the natural substance can also damage healthy cells when used. A team of researchers from Frankfurt am Main and Giessen has now discovered milder melittin variants in evolutionarily older wild bee species that seem to be more usable for pharmacology. When we hear about bees, in most cases only the honeybee (Apis…
How optical microscopes allow detailed investigations of nanoparticles. It sounds like trying to scan a vinyl record with a hammer: Light is actually too “coarse” to image small particles on the nanometer scale. However, in their project “Supercol”- funded by the European Union – scientists want to achieve just that: The investigation of nanoparticles with light. To make this possible, they are combining Nobel Prize-winning methods with modern computer processes. The goal: the development of novel nanoparticles for biomedical applications….
Positrons can be produced by bombarding high-current and high-energy electrons into a target made of heavy metal, such as tungsten. However, not only positrons but also substantially equal numbers of electrons are produced in the target and they are simultaneously captured by electric and magnetic forces in the positron capture section, which is subsequently located after the target. Positrons are separated from electrons by magnetic force just after the capture section. It is very difficult to independently detect positrons and…
… and sorting of single bacterial cells. The identification, sorting and export of single bacterial cells rather than just populations of them has long been incredibly complex, expensive and often just does not work without damaging the cells. Now, researchers from the Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and their collaborators have proposed a new system called “EasySort AUTO” that allows single-cell analysis even of bacteria. It is based on artificial intelligence…
A research group led by Prof. WU Kaifeng from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP), Chinese Academy of Sciences recently reported the successful initialization, coherent quantum-state control, and readout of spins at room temperature using solution-grown quantum dots, which represents an important advance in quantum information science. The study was published in Nat. Nanotechnol. on Dec 19th. Quantum information science is concerned with the manipulation of the quantum version of information bits (called qubits). When people talk about materials…
Data collection uses a rare, ground-based instrument to pinpoint where and how quickly the landscape is changing. A team from the University of South Florida is on the ground in Hawaii studying Mauna Loa, the largest active volcano in the world, to improve efforts that can help protect residents from lava flow. While slow-moving, lava averages 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit and destroys everything in its path. The team is collecting data that will be used to create models that can help…
… in stable, efficient & scalable perovskite solar cells. Members of Exciton Science have created perovskite solar cells with 21% efficiency, the best results ever recorded for a device made from a non-halide lead source. A new pathway to creating durable, efficient perovskite photovoltaics at industrial scale has been demonstrated through the first effective use of lead acetate as a precursor in making formamidinium-caesium perovskite solar cells. Members of Exciton Science, based at Monash University, were able to create perovskite…
Researchers analyze volcanic gases with the help of ultra-lightweight sensor systems. Composition of gases emitted by volcanoes can provide information on the possibility of imminent eruptions / Lightweight drones make investigation possible even in areas that are difficult to access. The main gases released by volcanoes are water vapor, carbon dioxide, and sulfur dioxide. Analyzing these gases is one of the best ways of obtaining information on volcanic systems and the magmatic processes that are underway. The ratio of carbon…
The design for the Next Generation Very Large Array (ngVLA) prototype antenna has passed an intensive, five-day review, clearing the way to begin manufacturing the prototype antenna. The review in Wiesbaden, Germany was attended by scientists and engineers from the National Science Foundation (NSF), the NSF’s National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO), and mtex antenna technology GmbH, the firm contracted to develop the design and produce the prototype. The NRAO and mtex representatives presented details of the design to a panel…
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