Crystal phenomena as a research area investigates the physical behaviors and properties that arise from the ordered atomic or molecular arrangements in crystalline solids, including symmetry-governed effects and defect-related responses. It encompasses studies of phase transitions, lattice dynamics, crystallographic defects (dislocations, vacancies, interfaces), anisotropic mechanical, thermal, and electronic behavior, as well as optical and dielectric responses governed by crystal symmetry and band structure. The field integrates experimental techniques such as X-ray and neutron diffraction, electron microscopy, and spectroscopies with theoretical and computational methods to elucidate structure–property relationships, enabling the design and control of functional materials in electronics, photonics, mechanics, and quantum technologies.
A QUT-led study analyzing data from NASA's Perseverance rover has uncovered compelling evidence of multiple mineral-forming events just beneath the Martian surface—findings that bring scientists one step closer to answering ...
Astrobiology
Apr 16, 2025
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Quasicrystals (QCs) are fascinating solid materials that exhibit an intriguing atomic arrangement. Unlike regular crystals, in which atomic arrangements have an ordered repeating pattern, QCs display long-range atomic order ...
Condensed Matter
Apr 11, 2025
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A research team has successfully fine-tuned the Rabi oscillation of polaritons, quantum composite particles, by leveraging changes in electrical properties induced by crystal structure transformation. Published in Advanced ...
Condensed Matter
Apr 9, 2025
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The melting of crystals is the process by which an increase in temperature induces the disruption of the ordered crystalline lattice, leading to the disordered structure and highly fluctuating dynamic behavior of liquids. ...
Researchers from Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) and the University of Montpellier have successfully synthesized wafer-scale hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) exhibiting an AA-stacking configuration, a crystal ...
Nanophysics
Mar 20, 2025
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In their ongoing efforts to push the boundaries of quantum possibilities, physicists in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis have created a new type of "time crystal," a novel phase of matter that defies ...
Condensed Matter
Mar 17, 2025
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Have you ever left a bottle of liquid in the freezer, only to find it cracked or shattered? To save you from tedious freezer cleanups, researchers at the University of Amsterdam have investigated why this happens, and how ...
General Physics
Mar 14, 2025
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To study the interactions between electrons in a material, physicists have come up with a number of tricks over the years. These interactions are interesting, among other things, because they lead to technologically important ...
Condensed Matter
Mar 7, 2025
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A fundamental goal of physics is to explain the broadest range of phenomena with the fewest underlying principles. Remarkably, seemingly disparate problems often exhibit identical mathematical descriptions.
Condensed Matter
Mar 5, 2025
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Chirality refers to objects that cannot be superimposed onto their mirror images through any combination of rotations or translations, much like the distinct left and right hands of a human. In chiral crystals, the spatial ...
Condensed Matter
Jan 23, 2025
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