Complex media, as a physical system, denotes heterogeneous materials or environments in which wave or particle propagation is governed by multiple scattering, strong spatial disorder, or intricate internal structure across several length and time scales. Examples include disordered photonic materials, turbid biological tissues, granular packings, porous media, and metamaterials with engineered subwavelength structure. In such media, transport properties deviate from simple diffusion or ballistic regimes, often exhibiting localization, anomalous diffusion, nontrivial effective constitutive relations, and strong coupling between microstructure and macroscopic response, requiring statistical, mesoscopic, or computational approaches for accurate characterization and prediction.
Proteins are essential molecules in living systems. They move, interact and organize themselves to carry out a wide range of functions, from helping cells communicate to forming structures inside the cell. In many cases, ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Apr 23, 2026
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Researchers at the University of Vienna have uncovered a surprising phenomenon: polymer chains with segments that simply fluctuate at different intensities can spontaneously develop directional, persistent motion when densely ...
General Physics
Mar 5, 2026
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As organisms develop from embryos, groups of cells migrate and reshape themselves to form all manner of complex tissues. There are no anatomical molds shaped like lungs, livers or other tissues for cells to grow into. Rather, ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jan 26, 2026
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Complex fluids, such as polymer melts and concentrated suspensions, are foundational materials for industrial products, including high-strength plastics and optical components. The final performance of these materials depends ...
Optics & Photonics
Dec 29, 2025
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Researchers have harnessed nonlocal artificial materials to create optical systems that emulate parallel spaces, wormholes, and multiple realities. A single material acts as two distinct optical media or devices simultaneously, ...
General Physics
Oct 21, 2025
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Researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have developed hollow microspheres made of mucus and polydopamine using a simple and scalable production method. These tiny spheres are intended to serve as packaging ...
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 7, 2025
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84
Many materials store information about what has happened to them in a sort of material memory, like wrinkles on a once crumpled piece of paper. Now, a team led by Penn State physicists has uncovered how, under specific conditions, ...
Condensed Matter
Jan 29, 2025
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81
Scientists at Caltech and Princeton University have discovered that bacterial cells growing in a solution of polymers, such as mucus, form long cables that buckle and twist on each other, building a kind of "living Jell-O."
Bio & Medicine
Jan 18, 2025
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200
Are our bodies solid or liquid? We all know the convention—that solids maintain their shapes, while liquids fill the containers they're in. But often in the real world, those lines are blurred. Imagine walking on a beach. ...
General Physics
Feb 12, 2024
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134
A coating that can hide objects in plain sight, or an implant that behaves exactly like bone tissue—these extraordinary objects are already made from "metamaterials." Researchers from TU Delft have now developed an AI tool ...
Nanomaterials
Feb 9, 2024
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