EPFL researchers have developed a hybrid device that significantly improves existing, ubiquitous laser technology. EPFL researchers have developed a hybrid device that significantly improves existing, ubiquitous laser technology. The team at EPFL’s Photonic Systems Laboratory (PHOSL) has developed a chip-scale laser source that enhances the performance of semiconductor lasers while enabling the generation of shorter wavelengths. This pioneering work, led by Professor Camille Brès and postdoctoral researcher Marco Clementi from EPFL’s School of Engineering represents a significant advance in the…
… revealed by models, observations. Fission models find clear fingerprints of nuclear process never before directly observed in stars. The elements above iron on the periodic table are thought to be created in cataclysmic explosions like the merger of two neutron stars or in rare classes of supernovae. New research suggests fission may operate in the cosmos during the creation of the heavy elements. Combing through data on a variety of elements that reside in very old stars, researchers have…
Under certain circumstances galaxies release huge quantities of matter into their environment, triggered by a large number of explosions of massive stars. The MUSE instrument of the Very Large Telescope of the European Southern Observatory (ESO) has now demonstrated for the first time that such “galactic winds” are by no means rare, but actually occur frequently. An international research team, led by the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS), found the double-cone-shaped structures characteristic of galactic winds when examining…
…bridge the gap between nanoscopic and macroscopic. In a new Nature paper, two nanotechnology approaches converge by employing a new generation of fabrication technology. It combines the scalability of semiconductor technology with the atomic dimensions enabled by self-assembly. A central goal in quantum optics and photonics is to increase the strength of the interaction between light and matter to produce, e.g., better photodetectors or quantum light sources. The best way to do that is to use optical resonators that store…
Atmospheric water harvester provides water to arid communities using hygroscopic gel and salts. More than 2.2 billion people currently live in water-stressed countries, and the United Nations estimates that 3.5 million die every year from water-related diseases. Because the areas most in need of improved drinking water are also located in some of the sunniest places in the world, there is strong interest in harnessing sunlight to help obtain clean water. Researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China developed…
Publication on Optically Controlled Magnetic Fields. Stimulated by corkscrew-shaped radiation: physicists at the University of Duisburg-Essen and their cooperating partners have discovered that tiny graphene sheets can become electromagnets under infrared radiation. Nature Communications reports on the findings. The sample itself is invisible to the human eye: there are tiny discs on a 2 x 2 millimeter surface, each with a diameter of 1.2 micrometers, just one hundredth of an average human hair. They consist of two layers of graphene…
Insights from Quantum Simulation. A collaboration between quantum physicists and astrophysicists, led by Francesca Ferlaino and Massimo Mannarelli, has achieved a significant breakthrough in understanding neutron star glitches. They were able to numerically simulate this enigmatic cosmic phenomenon with ultracold dipolar atoms. This research establishes a strong link between quantum mechanics and astrophysics and paves the way for quantum simulation of stellar objects from Earth. Neutron stars have fascinated and puzzled scientists since the first detected signature in 1967. Known…
Detection efficiency 1,000 times higher than conventional ion detectors due to high sensitivity. An international research team led by quantum physicist Markus Arndt (University of Vienna) has achieved a breakthrough in the detection of protein ions: Due to their high energy sensitivity, superconducting nanowire detectors achieve almost 100% quantum efficiency and exceed the detection efficiency of conventional ion detectors at low energies by a factor of up to a 1,000. In contrast to conventional detectors, they can also distinguish macromolecules…
When terahertz pulses strike graphene discs. Graphene, that is extremely thin carbon, is considered a true miracle material. An international research team has now added another facet to its diverse properties with experiments at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR): The experts, led by the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE), fired short terahertz pulses at micrometer-sized discs of graphene, which briefly turned these minuscule objects into surprisingly strong magnets. This discovery may prove useful for developing future magnetic switches and storage devices. The…
In a new study, researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder have used doughnut-shaped beams of light to take detailed images of objects too tiny to view with traditional microscopes. The new technique could help scientists improve the inner workings of a range of “nanoelectronics,” including the miniature semiconductors in computer chips. The discovery was highlighted Dec. 1 in a special issue of “Optics & Photonics News” called “Optics in 2023.” The research is the latest advance in the field…
Study by the Universities of Bonn and St. Andrews proposes a solution to one of the great mysteries of cosmology. The universe is expanding. How fast it does so is described by the so-called Hubble-Lemaitre constant. But there is a dispute about how big this constant actually is: Different measurement methods provide contradictory values. This so-called “Hubble tension” poses a puzzle for cosmologists. Researchers from the Universities of Bonn and St. Andrews are now proposing a new solution: Using an…
This surprising result is important for understanding unconventional superconductors and other materials where electrons band together to act collectively. Long before researchers discovered the electron and its role in generating electrical current, they knew about electricity and were exploring its potential. One thing they learned early on was that metals were great conductors of both electricity and heat. And in 1853, two scientists showed that those two admirable properties of metals were somehow related: At any given temperature, the ratio…
Kyoto-Hawai’i team reveals results of study from Ryugu samples. Micrometeorites originating from icy celestial bodies in the outer Solar System may be responsible for transporting nitrogen to the near-Earth region in the early days of our solar system. That discovery was published today in Nature Astronomy by an international team of researchers, including University of Hawai’i at Mānoa scientists, led by Kyoto University. Nitrogen compounds, such as ammonium salts, are abundant in material born in regions far from the sun,…
Photonic integrated circuits (PICs) are compact devices that combine multiple optical components on a single chip. They have a wide range of applications in communications, ranging, sensing, computing, spectroscopy, and quantum technology. PICs are now manufactured using mature semiconductor fabrication technologies. It has reduced costs and improved performance. This makes PICs a promising technology for a variety of applications. Photonic packaging is much more challenging than electronic packaging. PICs require much higher alignment accuracy, typically at the micron or even…
An international team of astronomers has used NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to provide the first observation of water and other molecules in the highly irradiated inner, rocky-planet-forming regions of a disk in one of the most extreme environments in our galaxy. These results suggest that the conditions for terrestrial planet formation can occur in a possible broader range of environments than previously thought. These are the first results from the eXtreme Ultraviolet Environments (XUE) James Webb Space Telescope program,…
Young scientists spearhead breakthrough COVID-19 research in international collaboration. Molecular biophysics study investigates how coronavirus’ variants of concern attachment strength to human cells influences COVID-19’s spread and transmissibility. A recent groundbreaking study, published in Nature Nanotechnology, sheds new light on the coronavirus’s behavior, particularly its ability to remain attached under various mechanical stresses and the implications for person-to-person transmission. The paper, titled “Single-molecule force stability of the SARS-CoV-2–ACE2 interface in variants-of-concern,” is the result of a collaborative effort led by…
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