Crystalline systems are physical systems in which constituent particles (atoms, ions, or molecules) are arranged in a periodic lattice that exhibits long-range translational order. They are characterized by discrete symmetry operations described by space groups, with unit cells repeating periodically in one, two, or three dimensions. This periodicity gives rise to well-defined Brillouin zones, phonon dispersion relations, and electronic band structures, which critically determine mechanical, optical, thermal, and electronic properties. Crystalline systems serve as fundamental models in condensed matter physics for studying phase transitions, defects (dislocations, vacancies), and emergent phenomena such as superconductivity and ferroelectricity.
University of Glasgow researchers are part of an international collaboration that could lead to a new generation of quantum sensors. The team, which included researchers from the University of Tokyo, University of Glasgow, ...
Condensed Matter
Oct 9, 2026
0
63
A University of Texas at Dallas scientist and her colleagues have discovered an unusual atomic pattern in a uranium-based material that gives it a rare combination of magnetic properties, a finding that could open new pathways ...
Condensed Matter
Oct 7, 2026
0
38
Creating a quantum device often begins by intentionally damaging a crystal. Scientists fire an ultrafast laser pulse into a material, knocking atoms out of place and leaving behind tiny imperfections called vacancies. Far ...
Optics & Photonics
Oct 6, 2026
0
25
The bulk photovoltaic effect (BPVE), a photoelectric effect that generates photocurrent without a p–n junction, can persist even when a material's average crystal structure remains centrosymmetric, a study from Institute ...
Condensed Matter
Oct 5, 2026
0
33
Most magnets have two poles: north and south, or positive and negative, in a familiar arrangement called a "dipole." But researchers are increasingly uncovering more complex forms of magnetism.
Condensed Matter
Sep 30, 2026
1
300
In materials chemistry, identifying common parameters that can organize magnetic ground states across complex intermetallic compounds remains a central challenge. Researchers have long used chemically tunable parameters to ...
Condensed Matter
Sep 30, 2026
0
46
Photonic integrated circuits route information with optical signals instead of relying only on electrical currents. Silicon (Si) and silicon nitride (SiNx) are excellent photonic platforms for waveguides, but they cannot ...
MXenes are two-dimensional nanomaterials first synthesized at Drexel University in 2011. They have been recognized by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry as an emerging technology with "true potential to ...
Nanomaterials
Sep 17, 2026
0
27
Scientists have discovered that there is ice deep inside planets like Neptune and Uranus and want to find out what form it takes and how it behaves. They cannot dig for it and transport it all the way back to Earth, so they ...
Some of the strangest weather in the solar system doesn't happen on Earth or even in Jupiter's Great Red Spot—it happens in the interiors of ice giants like Neptune and Uranus. Specifically, scientists have long believed ...
Planetary Sciences
Aug 29, 2026
0
109
