Page 12: Research news on 1-dimensional systems

In physics, 1-dimensional systems are idealized physical models constrained to a single spatial dimension, where all relevant degrees of freedom vary along one coordinate while transverse dimensions are neglected or treated as frozen. Such systems are fundamental in statistical mechanics, condensed matter, and field theory, enabling exact or quasi-exact treatments of phenomena like phase transitions, transport, and quantum correlations. They exhibit distinctive behavior, including enhanced fluctuations, restricted ordering, and nontrivial topological or conformal structures, and are often described by specialized frameworks such as Luttinger liquid theory, integrable spin chains, or exactly solvable lattice and continuum models.

Nanotubes illuminate the way to living photovoltaics

"We put nanotubes inside of bacteria," says Professor Ardemis Boghossian at EPFL's School of Basic Sciences. "That doesn't sound very exciting on the surface, but it's actually a big deal. Researchers have been putting nanotubes ...

Researchers build longest highly-conductive molecular nanowire 

As our devices get smaller and smaller, the use of molecules as the main components in electronic circuitry is becoming ever more critical. Over the past 10 years, researchers have been trying to use single molecules as conducting ...

Quantum one-way street in topological insulator nanowires

Very thin wires made of a topological insulator could enable highly stable qubits, the building blocks of future quantum computers. Scientists see a new result in topological insulator devices as an important step towards ...

A pathway to high-quality ZnSe quantum wires

One-dimensional semiconductor nanowires with strong quantum confinement effect—quantum wires (QWs)—are of great interest for applications in advanced optoelectronics and photochemical conversions. Beyond the state-of-the-art ...

Ring my string: Building silicon nano-strings

Tightening a string, e.g. when tuning a guitar, makes it vibrate faster. But when strings are nano-sized, increased tension also reduces, or 'dilutes', the loss of the string's vibrational modes.

Researchers reveal why nanowires stick to each other

Nanowires, used in sensors, transistors, optoelectronic devices and other systems that require subatomic preciseness, like to stick together. Untangling electrical wires can be a difficult task—imagine trying to separate ...

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