Topological photonics is a rapidly evolving area of research that focuses on the design of photonic lattices where the behavior of light is inspired from the physics of topological insulators. While most studies in this area presented photonic systems with linear...
Physics
Using laser technology to measure the rotational cooling of molecular ions colliding with electrons
When it is free in cold space, a molecule will spontaneously cool down by slowing its rotation and losing rotational energy in quantum transitions. Physicists have shown that this rotational cooling process can be accelerated, slowed down and even inverted by the...
Chip-scale Floquet topological insulators to enhance 5G wireless communications
Floquet topological insulators are materials with topological phases that originate from tailored time-dependent perturbations of their crystal structure. These materials have been proved to feature highly unusual electron conduction properties. In recent years, there...
Astrophysicists simulate a fuzzy dark matter galactic halo
Dark matter is a type of matter in the universe that does not absorb, reflect or emit light, which makes it impossible to directly detect. In recent years, astrophysicists and cosmologists worldwide have been trying to indirectly detect this elusive type of matter, to...
Thermalization and information scrambling in a superconducting quantum processor
In recent years, physicists have carried out extensive studies focusing on quantum technology and quantum many-body systems. Two out-of-equilibrium dynamical processes that have attracted particular attention in this field are quantum thermalization and information...
Remarkably strong pairing of charge carriers in bilayer antiferromagnetic Mott insulators
Over the past few years, many physicists and material scientists have been investigating superconductivity, the complete disappearance of electrical resistance observed in some solid materials. Superconductivity has so far been primarily observed in materials that are...
Searching for cosmic-ray boosted sub-GeV dark matter using data from the PandaX-II experiment
Physicists worldwide are continuing their search for dark matter, an elusive type of matter that does not absorb, reflect or emit light and is believed to make up most of the matter in the universe. A type of dark matter that many teams have been specifically looking...
Using renormalization group methods to study how the brain processes information
Past neuroscience research suggests that biological neural networks in the brain could self-organize into a critical state. In physics, a critical state is essentially a point that marks the transition between ordered and disordered phases of matter.
From conventional to strange metal behavior in magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene
Magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene (MATBG) is a graphene-based material with a unique structure, consisting of two graphene sheets layered on top of each other with a misalignment of approximately 1.1°. This unique structure has been found to host various...
Theoretical model offers a new perspective on black hole formation and evolution
Black holes are regions in space characterized by gravitational fields so intense that no matter or radiation can escape from them. They are solutions to Einstein's field equations, with a point of unphysical infinite density at their center.