Atomic and molecular structure as a research area investigates the spatial arrangement, electronic configuration, and intrinsic quantum properties of atoms and molecules, and how these features determine their spectroscopic, chemical, and physical behavior. It encompasses theoretical and computational methods (e.g., ab initio quantum chemistry, density functional theory, configuration interaction) and experimental techniques (e.g., high-resolution spectroscopy, scattering, synchrotron and XFEL-based probes) to resolve electronic states, bonding patterns, potential energy surfaces, and correlation effects. This field underpins understanding of reactivity, photophysics, materials properties, and the design of novel molecules, clusters, and nanostructures with targeted electronic and structural characteristics.
For decades, scientists have understood proteins primarily through two defining features: their amino acid sequence and their three-dimensional structure. This framework has driven major advances in biology, biotechnology ...
Molecular & Computational biology
23 hours ago
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Atoms in a material are rarely still. They jiggle back and forth in collective lattice vibrations known as phonons. Their motion can also carry a rotational element: In 2023, scientists at PSI experimentally proved the existence ...
Condensed Matter
Sep 7, 2026
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As the electronics in our technology keep shrinking, traditional silicon-based chips are approaching their fundamental physical limits. Yet the wires connecting them might be able to shrink beyond conventional dimensions, ...
Conformational changes in proteins are vital to their function yet remain challenging for state-of-the-art artificial intelligence, such as AlphaFold3, to predict. Researchers at the Institute for Molecular Science (IMS), ...
Biotechnology
Sep 5, 2026
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Advanced materials power everything from batteries and electronics to clean energy technologies. For years, engineers have known that microwave-assisted synthesis can dramatically accelerate the chemical reactions used to ...
Nanomaterials
Sep 1, 2026
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Researchers at Constructor University and Constructor Labs have developed BiteNetI, a deep-learning model that locates the binding sites of 14 biologically important ion types directly in three-dimensional protein structures. ...
Biotechnology
Sep 1, 2026
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Alzheimer's disease is a neurodegenerative brain disorder characterized by progressive memory loss and a decline in other mental functions. Past studies have consistently linked this disorder to the accumulation of the protein ...
One of the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease is the accumulation of a peptide in the brain known as amyloid beta. A new study published in Nature Communications on July 22 has uncovered the atomic structure of the peptide ...
Bio & Medicine
Aug 6, 2026
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One of the most famous and intriguing results of quantum mechanics is the finding that fundamental particles, such as electrons, cannot be pinned down to one single location. Instead, a particle is described by its "wavefunction," ...
Optics & Photonics
Aug 4, 2026
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198
Electronic motion sets the stage for virtually every light-induced process in nature, from the first step of a chemical reaction to the flow of charge in a solid. Yet these processes unfold so rapidly that they can be observed ...
General Physics
Jul 29, 2026
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