https://phys.org/physics-news/quantum-physics/ en-us The latest news on quantum physics, wave particle duality, quantum theory, quantum mechanics, quantum entanglement, quantum teleportation, and quantum computing. In a recent study, Manish Garg, independent group leader at Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research (MPI FKF), succeeded in probing the local properties of bright and dark excitons in the organic superconductor copper naphthalocyanine (CuNc). The findings are published in the journal Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-packet-interferometry-captures-elusive-dark.html Condensed Matter Tue, 23 Jun 2026 18:10:03 EDT news701453702 Researchers from the University of Sydney, working with IBM, have identified and quantified important factors limiting the performance of quantum computers and demonstrated ways to overcome their impact. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-pathway-high-fidelity-quantum.html Quantum Physics Tue, 23 Jun 2026 13:20:01 EDT news701434021 Modern physics theories highlight the key role of horizons—boundaries beyond which information cannot reach an observer—in a variety of cosmological and gravitational phenomena. Two renowned examples of these boundaries are event horizons in black holes and the cosmological horizon of the de Sitter spacetime, a model of an expanding universe with a positive vacuum energy. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-horizon-edge-states-gain-finite.html General Physics Tue, 23 Jun 2026 08:20:01 EDT news701343470 Two cups of warm water don't make one cup of boiling water. But in the quantum world, multiple low-energy photons can combine to produce a single, higher-energy photon. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-solid-state-material-visible-high.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 23 Jun 2026 05:00:05 EDT news701347021 Physicists have long suspected that a peculiar quantum state lurks inside a class of materials known as kagome metals, but proving its existence has been elusive. Now, a team led by Yeongkwan Kim at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology has performed experiments on a kagome metal that provide the strongest evidence yet for this exotic state. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-broken-reversal-symmetry-phase-kagome.html Superconductivity Mon, 22 Jun 2026 13:40:10 EDT news701352617 Physicists from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) have examined a fundamental property of quantum mechanics in collaboration with the German Aerospace Center (DLR). In an article published in the journal Physical Review Letters, they show that this theory does not necessarily need to be formulated with imaginary numbers—real numbers can, in fact, also be used. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-quantum-mechanics-theory-imaginary-analysis.html Quantum Physics Sun, 21 Jun 2026 18:20:01 EDT news701082298 A researcher at Kyushu University and his collaborators have shown that continuous parameters in quantum gravity may not be freely adjustable "dials" from outside the theory, but rather arise from operators within the theory itself, supporting the century-old claim by Albert Einstein about the fundamental laws of nature. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-quantum-gravity-links-parameters-local.html General Physics Sat, 20 Jun 2026 15:00:01 EDT news700921138 In a paper published in Science Advances, researchers at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) in collaboration with the University of Minnesota and Kyung Hee University have found a new way to control quantum light sources, which is one of the key elements needed before quantum technologies can be used reliably in real-world systems. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-tiny-quantum-sources-atomically-thin.html Optics & Photonics Fri, 19 Jun 2026 14:00:06 EDT news701077501 Superfluids are intriguing states of matter in which particles behave like a giant collective wave, allowing them to flow without any friction. When this fluid flows past a fixed obstacle at a velocity below a specific threshold, it moves around it without slowing down or exerting any drag. Above this critical velocity, however, the superfluid state starts to break down, and the energy from the flow dissipates in the form of ripples and vortices in the fluid. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-tiny-superfluid.html Soft Matter Fri, 19 Jun 2026 13:20:01 EDT news701088049 Physicists in China have observed five phases in localization physics within a single quantum system. Using an advanced photonic platform, the team, led by Yucheng Wang and Jingyun Fan at the Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, has demonstrated that localization physics is likely far richer than physicists anticipated. Their results have been published in Physical Review Letters. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-phases-localization-physics-quantum.html General Physics Fri, 19 Jun 2026 07:00:12 EDT news700992908 Researchers at the National Graphene Institute, in collaboration with the National University of Singapore, have shown that the magnetic behavior of electrons in graphene can be precisely controlled using electricity, revealing unusually large spin signals in a carefully engineered graphene system. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-electrically-tunable-polarization-graphene-path.html Condensed Matter Thu, 18 Jun 2026 18:00:03 EDT news701014116 In a new study published in Physical Review Letters, a team from the Nägerl group, together with theory collaborator Alvise Bastianello from the CNRS and the Université Paris-Dauphine, demonstrates that highly unusual quantum states known as "fractional Fermi seas" can be quantum engineered. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-equilibrium-cesium-atoms-reveal-fractional.html Quantum Physics Thu, 18 Jun 2026 12:20:01 EDT news700999737 A public-private partnership in the Mountain West announced new results today that mark steady progress toward the Department of Energy's goal of fault-tolerant quantum computing, systems large and reliable enough to solve complex problems. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-helios-quantum-tops-fidelity-qubit.html Quantum Physics Wed, 17 Jun 2026 18:40:03 EDT news700920721 Scientists studying particle collisions at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) usually capture what happens when atomic nuclei smash into one another at nearly the speed of light. But even when the nuclei don't collide, interesting things can happen. In a new paper just published in Physical Review Letters, members of RHIC's STAR collaboration describe a new way to use near-miss collisions at RHIC to study what's going on inside the nucleus. The approach advances the reach of RHIC, a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science user facility at DOE's Brookhaven National Laboratory, into the next frontier in nuclear physics—a journey into the inner workings of the building blocks of matter. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-flipped-quantum-clearer-gluon-nuclear.html General Physics Wed, 17 Jun 2026 18:20:01 EDT news700920181 Europe's first and only TES spectrometer at a synchrotron source is now in operation at BESSY II, developed within a collaboration between the HZB, the MPI-CEC (Mühlheim-an-der-Ruhr, Germany) and the NIST (Boulder, Colorado, U.S.). The photon detection efficiency of the new instrument exceeds that of wavelength-dispersive X-ray emission spectrometers by a factor of 100 to 1,000. It will be used to investigate the electronic properties of atomically thin layers, nanostructures and highly diluted atomic and molecular samples. The team is looking forward to receiving exciting research proposals from the user community. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-superconducting-tes-array-ray-spectrometer.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 17 Jun 2026 15:40:03 EDT news700917181 A newly developed method allows researchers to dynamically switch chirality—a particular lack of mirror symmetry—to generate spin currents in semiconductors, researchers from Science Tokyo report. Their approach relies on the reversible insertion and removal of small chiral molecules from the interlayer gaps of a layered, nonchiral semiconductor material using electrochemistry. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-reversible-chirality-mos-generates-currents.html Condensed Matter Wed, 17 Jun 2026 12:40:05 EDT news700909861 A prototype quantum sensor developed by researchers at Imperial has demonstrated for the first time that a key principle behind next-generation quantum detectors can work under realistic conditions. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-quantum-sensor-major-obstacle-dark.html General Physics Wed, 17 Jun 2026 11:00:07 EDT news700820402 Physicists have long been drawn to the nonlinear Hall effect: a subtle variant of the classical Hall effect, in which an electric voltage appears perpendicular to a current flowing through a material. Unlike its classical counterpart, the nonlinear version can arise even without breaking time-reversal symmetry, and its magnitude is tied to deep geometric properties of electron wave functions. So far, however, the behavior of the effect when a magnetic field is applied has remained poorly understood. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-quantum-hall-effect-gains-graphene.html Condensed Matter Wed, 17 Jun 2026 09:40:01 EDT news700903892 Cleveland Clinic researchers are unlocking quantum computing's full potential through the creation of a new computing paradigm inspired by the human brain. Fabio Cumbo, Ph.D., research associate in the lab of Daniel Blankenberg, Ph.D., associate staff, Computational Life Sciences, is developing the model, called quantum hyperdimensional computing (QHDC). https://phys.org/news/2026-06-quantum-hyperdimensional-faster-methods.html Quantum Physics Tue, 16 Jun 2026 19:00:03 EDT news700834148 Many quantum effects can be observed only when a small number of particles is studied—individual atoms, molecules or photons, for example, carefully shielded from the rest of the world. But what about macroscopic objects, consisting of an unimaginably large number of particles? Can they, too, display effects that provide a direct glimpse into the quantum world? https://phys.org/news/2026-06-high-degree-quantum-entanglement-centimeter.html Condensed Matter Tue, 16 Jun 2026 17:00:04 EDT news700831442 Researchers around the world are racing to develop new quantum-based systems for sensing, communication, computing and control that have the promise of outperforming traditional systems. Creating stable, measurable, distinguishable quantum states—which would be the heart of any such system—is a daunting task. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-abstract-algebra-distinguishable-states-quantum.html Quantum Physics Mon, 15 Jun 2026 17:30:04 EDT news700761841 What would it take to instantly transform a material from an electrical insulator into a conductive state without ever touching it? Using ultrafast laser pulses and powerful X-rays, scientists at the National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II)—a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science user facility at DOE's Brookhaven National Laboratory—developed a methodology to generate "hidden" phases and understand why they work. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-ultrafast-laser-pulses-reveal-material.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 15 Jun 2026 14:00:03 EDT news700744741 A team of U.S. researchers has designed a passive quantum error correction technique that enables qubits to correct their own errors. Demonstrated by Shruti Shirol and colleagues at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, the protocol transforms the inevitable dissipation of energy in qubit systems from a hindrance into an advantage, offering a promising route toward practical quantum computing outside the lab. The research has been published in Physical Review X. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-passive-quantum-error-qubit-lifetime.html Quantum Physics Mon, 15 Jun 2026 09:40:08 EDT news700480884 The ability to control the movement of negatively charged particles (i.e., electrons) is central to the functioning of all modern electronic devices. This control is typically attained using a gate, an electrode via which an applied electric field alters a material's electrical properties. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-quasi-1d-material-electric-standard.html Condensed Matter Mon, 15 Jun 2026 06:40:01 EDT news700304476 A University of Birmingham scientist has built a "mini-universe" that takes a step toward answering one of science's biggest questions: "What is time?" Publishing his findings in Physical Review Research, Professor Giovanni Barontini shows how it is possible to measure the flow of time without using a clock at all. The new findings provide a scientific model in which a version of time emerges from the experiment itself. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-scientist-miniuniverse-clock.html General Physics Fri, 12 Jun 2026 14:20:01 EDT news700487646 Quantum materials, materials with properties that are governed by the laws of quantum mechanics, have proved to be highly promising for the development of ultra-efficient electronic devices, quantum processors, highly precise sensors and various other technologies. Reliably controlling these materials' quantum phases would be highly advantageous, as it would enable engineers to tailor and optimize their properties for specific applications. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-quantum-hall-stripes-2d-materials.html Optics & Photonics Fri, 12 Jun 2026 07:00:03 EDT news700304463 In a quest to build the most accurate quantum sensors in the world, scientists are constantly improving their performance, making them more precise, more stable and more reliable. But eventually, physical constraints will prevent further improvements. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-kind-entanglement-quantum-sensors-tune.html Quantum Physics Thu, 11 Jun 2026 18:30:04 EDT news700418941 An international team whose research was coordinated by Osaka Metropolitan University (OMU) has reported the survival of metallic behavior in the strongly correlated molecular material ytterbium cesium fulleride (Yb₂CsC₆₀). The electrons in the newly synthesized material remained mobile and continued to conduct electricity even at the lowest temperatures studied, despite strong electron interactions that would normally be expected to drive the material into an insulating state. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-newly-fullerene-material-metallic-temperatures.html Condensed Matter Thu, 11 Jun 2026 17:40:01 EDT news700410601 Many natural processes, ranging from magnetism to chemical reactions, entail the movement and rotation of particles at very small scales. In quantum mechanics, particles exhibit both particle-like and wave-like behaviors, and their states can be described mathematically using representations known as wavefunctions. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-electron-gain-ultrafast-torque-flips.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 11 Jun 2026 07:00:01 EDT news700225602 Quantum materials are a class of exotic materials with special properties that are governed by quantum mechanics rather than classical physics. Those properties—like superconductivity, entanglement and unusual forms of magnetism—often originate in the tiny repeating patterns of atoms inside crystals, but through clever engineering, they can be observed and controlled at a more human scale. Quantum materials are helping to power the quickly growing field of quantum computing and could find their way into future generations of energy-efficient electronics. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-ai-reveal-large-scale-quantum.html Condensed Matter Wed, 10 Jun 2026 17:00:06 EDT news700320241