https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Researchers at the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering have developed a new approach to nanoscale 3D printing that improves both speed and fidelity, overcoming a challenge that has limited the technology's broader use in manufacturing. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-pixel-patterns-harness-diffraction-faster.html Nanophysics Mon, 03 Aug 2026 16:20:02 EDT news704985845 A research team in China has reported a significant piezoelectric effect in ultrathin and ultra-flexible polycrystalline diamond membranes. This pioneering discovery challenges a century-long scientific dogma that diamonds are strictly non-piezoelectric. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-piezoelectric-effect-diamond-membranes-century.html Condensed Matter Thu, 21 May 2026 12:20:05 EDT news698578321 Piezoelectric materials, which convert mechanical stress into electricity and vice versa, are essential components in sensors, actuators, and energy-harvesting devices. However, the best piezoelectric materials, such as lead zirconate titanate (PZT), are toxic because they contain lead—prompting a search for lead-free alternatives. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-ultrathin-bifeo8323-nm-limit-fourfold.html Nanophysics Tue, 17 Mar 2026 18:30:02 EDT news692983801 Using atomic-scale defects in diamond, researchers in China have gained unprecedented insights into the complex chemical processes that unfold at the interfaces between solid surfaces and their surroundings. Published in Physical Review Letters, the results reveal that water molecules can form a nanoscale, ice-like layer on diamond surfaces—with important implications for our understanding of interfacial dynamics. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-diamond-surfaces-thin-ice-layers.html Nanophysics Tue, 24 Feb 2026 09:30:49 EST news691147795 Controlled manipulation of fibers that are as thin as or even thinner than human hair is a real challenge. Despite technological development, the precise and reversible change of the microfibers' orientation is not easy. The interdisciplinary team of researchers from the Institute of Physical Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences, has recently developed a way to control the shape of microfibers with electricity. This brings us closer to a novel technical solution in micromechanics and soft robotics. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-carbon-fiber-electricity-wireless-voltage.html Nanomaterials Fri, 13 Feb 2026 13:40:29 EST news690212401 Strontium titanate was once used as a diamond substitute in jewelry before less fragile alternatives emerged in the 1970s. Now, researchers have explored some of its more unusual properties, which might someday be useful in quantum materials and microelectronics applications. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-strained-strontium-titanate-membrane-ferroelectric.html Condensed Matter Thu, 29 May 2025 15:55:04 EDT news667752901 Researchers have developed an extremely thin, flexible imager that could be useful for noninvasively acquiring images from inside the body. The new technology could one day enable early and precise disease detection, providing critical insights to guide timely and effective treatment. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-flexible-imager-thinner-eyelash-capture.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 19 May 2025 16:10:01 EDT news666889444 Opaque materials can transmit light when excited by a high-intensity laser beam. This process, known as optical bleaching, induces a nonlinear effect that temporarily alters the properties of a material. Remarkably, when the laser is switched on and off at ultrahigh speeds, the effect can be dynamically controlled, opening new possibilities for advanced optical technologies. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-multivalley-semiconductor-enables-optical-germanium.html Condensed Matter Wed, 16 Apr 2025 12:12:04 EDT news664024321 Just a few years ago, researchers discovered that changing the angle between two layers of graphene, an atom-thick sheet of carbon, also changed the material's electronic and optical properties. They then learned that a "twist" of 1.1 degrees—dubbed the "magic" angle—could transform this metallic material into an insulator or a superconductor, a finding that ignited excitement about a possible pathway to new quantum technologies. https://phys.org/news/2024-08-world-micromachine-2d-materials.html Nanophysics Thu, 22 Aug 2024 10:00:03 EDT news643539601 The so-called Casimir force or Casimir effect is a quantum mechanical phenomenon resulting from fluctuations in the electromagnetic field between two conducting or dielectric surfaces that are a short distance apart. Studies have shown that this force can be either be attractive or repulsive, depending on the dielectric and magnetic properties of the materials used in experiments. https://phys.org/news/2024-06-method-reversibly-casimir-external-magnetic.html Condensed Matter Tue, 18 Jun 2024 07:30:01 EDT news637857959 Research teams led by Prof. Zeng Changgan and Zhang Hui from the Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have achieved a reversible transition from the Casimir attraction to repulsion under magnetic field control by using a magnetic fluid as an intermediate medium. Their study is published in Nature Physics. https://phys.org/news/2024-06-tune-casimir-magnetic-fields.html Condensed Matter Thu, 13 Jun 2024 11:07:02 EDT news637495621 Lighting a gas grill, getting an ultrasound, using an ultrasonic toothbrush—these actions involve the use of materials that can translate an electric voltage into a change in shape and vice versa. https://phys.org/news/2024-05-high-alternative-conventional-ferroelectrics.html Condensed Matter Thu, 23 May 2024 17:28:04 EDT news635704081 Programmable photonic integrated circuits (PPICs) process light waves for computation, sensing, and signaling in ways that can be programmed to suit diverse requirements. Researchers at Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), in South Korea, with collaborators at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), have achieved a major advance in incorporating microelectromechanical systems into PPICs. https://phys.org/news/2024-02-key-photonic-components-supercomputing-technology.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 05 Feb 2024 09:44:03 EST news626348641 Nearly 70 years after the launch of the first satellite, we still have more questions than answers about space. But a team of Berkeley researchers is on a mission to change this with a proposal to build a fleet of low-cost, autonomous spacecraft, each weighing only 10 grams and propelled by nothing more than the pressure of solar radiation. These miniaturized solar sails could potentially visit thousands of near-Earth asteroids and comets, capturing high-resolution images and collecting samples. https://phys.org/news/2024-01-qa-small-solar-giant-interplanetary.html Space Exploration Fri, 19 Jan 2024 10:33:05 EST news624882781 A multidisciplinary team of researchers from Skoltech has discovered the resonance frequencies of diatom frustules. These intricately structured silicon dioxide shells of single-celled microalgae provide a promising model for nature-inspired electronic and optical devices, such as tiny ultrasound detectors for advanced medical imaging and components for ultrafast signal processing in microchips of the future. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-glassy-shell-microscopic-algae-tiny.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 13 Dec 2023 12:14:34 EST news621692071 Bulk acoustic resonators—stacked material structures inside which acoustic waves resonate—can be used to amplify sounds or filter out undesired noise. These resonators have found wide use in today's RF telecommunication, like Front-End Modules (FEM) in iPhones. They could also be valuable components for various cutting-edge scientific applications, including quantum technologies and imaging devices. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-strategy-spin-acoustic-silicon-vacancies-4h.html Condensed Matter Fri, 20 Oct 2023 07:00:02 EDT news616933556 A team of researchers led by Academician DU Jiangfeng from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has made a significant breakthrough in exploring exotic spin interactions. They successfully utilized solid-state spin quantum sensors based on nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond to investigate these interactions at the microscale. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-exploring-exotic-interactions-microscale-solid-state.html Quantum Physics Wed, 27 Sep 2023 11:51:49 EDT news615034306 Diagnosing and treating gastrointestinal tract diseases can be notoriously invasive and time-consuming: blood and stool lab work; biopsies, colonoscopies and endoscopies; and X-rays, CT scans and MRI imaging. But what if there was an alternative as simple as popping a Bayer aspirin? https://phys.org/news/2023-05-ingestible-capsule-gi-tract-diseases.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 29 May 2023 09:43:48 EDT news604572224 Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) involve the use and development of micron-sized electrical devices such as microelectrodes, sensors, and actuators that are integrated into computer and smartphone chips. Fabricating such integrated MEMS devices is usually a challenging task as these devices often deviate from their original design owing to the defects introduced during their fabrication and operation. This, in turn, limits their performance. Therefore, it is crucial to identify and rectify these defects. https://phys.org/news/2023-03-visualizing-spatial-electric-properties-microscales.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 23 Mar 2023 10:30:02 EDT news598785836 Sometimes friction is good, such as the friction between a road and a car's tires to prevent the vehicle from skidding. But sometimes friction is bad—if you did not put oil in that very same car, there would be so much friction in the bearings of the engine that the car could not operate. https://phys.org/news/2023-01-humidity-key-super-lubricity.html Nanomaterials Tue, 10 Jan 2023 12:17:04 EST news592575422 Lasers find applications across several fields ranging from telecommunications and remote sensing to medicine. There are many ways in which one can generate laser emission, or lasing, from a device or material. Consequently, there are many types of lasers with different principles of operation. https://phys.org/news/2023-01-playing-angles-high-contrast-direction-tunable-lasing.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 03 Jan 2023 14:45:08 EST news591979499 Today, lasers are well-established in daily life, even if it is sometimes hard to tell what and where they are. As an example, we can find them in CD/DVD readers or medical applications like cancer and eye surgery, being essential tools in a vast range of multidisciplinary fields. All of this is the result of constant progress and development, from the first Maiman's ruby laser (1960) to the attosecond lasers, passing through exotic, funny demonstrations like Jell-O lasers. https://phys.org/news/2022-12-lasers-bond-semiconductor-electronics-components.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 05 Dec 2022 08:29:48 EST news589451374 In recent years, global digitalization has seen unprecedented acceleration. Video streaming and video conferencing in home office and remote learning settings has resulted in a spike in residential broadband usage. Emerging applications such as artificial intelligence and autonomous vehicles will further accelerate the need for data communication in the future. Today's internet infrastructure is built on fiber-optic communications, but how can the fiber-optic communication systems be made more efficient to fulfill future digital communication needs? https://phys.org/news/2022-11-silicon-photonic-microelectromechanical.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 07 Nov 2022 16:26:03 EST news587060761 An international group of researchers has measured how much a laser beam tugs on the water it shines through. https://phys.org/news/2022-04-unveiling-bulk-surface-dielectric-liquid.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 20 Apr 2022 12:35:26 EDT news569676923 In a new report now published in Science Advances, Andrey Jarmola and an international research team in physics and materials in the U.S. and Germany demonstrated the function of a rotation sensor based on the Nitrogen-14 (14N) nuclear spins intrinsic to nitrogen-vacancy color centers in diamond. Nitrogen vacancy color centers are formed by nitrogen impurities that sit next to a missing carbon in diamond. The sensor used optical polarization and readout of the nuclei and a radiofrequency double-quantum pulse protocol to monitor the 14N nuclear spin precession. Rotation sensors or gyroscopes are typically used for navigation and automotive guidance. Among commercial sensors including mechanical gyroscopes and microelectromechanical systems, emerging techniques include nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) gyroscopes. These sensors can surpass commercial devices within the next decade relative to accuracy, robustness and miniaturization. https://phys.org/news/2021-11-diamond-nuclear-gyroscope.html Quantum Physics Fri, 05 Nov 2021 09:56:27 EDT news555324981 Optical metasurfaces can unprecedently regulate versatile wavefronts at the subwavelength scale. Most well-established optical metasurfaces are, however, static and feature well-defined optical responses that are determined by optical metasurface configurations set during their development. The dynamic configurations of the materials investigated so far often show specific limitations and reduced reconfigurability. In a new report now published on Science Advances, Chao Meng and a research team in nanotechnology, nano-optics, and electronics in Denmark, Norway and China, combined a thin-film piezoelectric micromechanical system (MEMS) with a gap-surface plasmon-based optical metasurface (OMS). Using the setup, they developed an electrically driven, dynamic microelectromechanical system-optical metasurface platform to regulate phases alongside amplitude modulations of the reflected light by finely actuating the MEMS mirror. Using this platform, they showed how the components afforded polarization-independent beam steering and two-dimensional focusing with high modulation efficiencies and fast responses. The platform offers flexible solutions to realize complex dynamics of 2D wavefront regulations with applications in reconfigurable and adaptive optical networks and systems. https://phys.org/news/2021-07-piezoelectric-microelectromechanical-system-based-optical-metasurfaces.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 05 Jul 2021 08:00:01 EDT news544689983 Accelerometers in mobile phones, microprocessors in laptops, and gyroscopes that balance drones each rely on microelectromechanical systems, or MEMS for short. Within these small systems are even smaller devices, called actuators and sensors, that perform various physical functions.   https://phys.org/news/2021-06-tantalizing-tantalum-mems-thermal-actuators.html Nanophysics Fri, 25 Jun 2021 13:11:26 EDT news543845483 Hydrodynamic cavitation is a major phase change phenomena that can occur with a sudden decrease in the local static pressure within a fluid. The emergence of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and high-speed microfluidic devices have attracted considerable attention with implementations in many fields including cavitation applications. In a new study now on Nature: Microsystems and Nanoengineering, Farzad Rokhsar Talabazar and colleagues in Istanbul Turkey, Sweden and Switzerland proposed a new generation of cavitation-on-a-chip devices with eight parallel structured microchannels. The team used water and a poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) microbubble suspension as the working fluids in the device. The features of the next-generation cavitation-on-a-chip instrument have applications across microfluidic or organ-on-a-chip devices for integrated drug release and tissue-engineering applications. https://phys.org/news/2021-06-cavitation-on-a-chip-device-multiple-microchannel-configuration.html Nanophysics Mon, 21 Jun 2021 09:40:01 EDT news543485115 Researchers have developed new X-ray optics that can be used to harness extremely fast pulses in a package that is significantly smaller and lighter than conventional devices used to modulate X-rays. The new optics are based on microscopic chip-based devices known as microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). https://phys.org/news/2021-04-optics-on-a-chip-device-paves-capturing-fast.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 20 Apr 2021 17:19:56 EDT news538157942 Hafnium-based thin films, with a thickness of only a few nanometres, exhibit an unconventional form of ferroelectricity. This allows the construction of nanometre-sized memories or logic devices. However, it was not clear how ferroelectricity could occur at this scale. A study that was led by scientists from the University of Groningen showed how atoms move in a hafnium-based capacitor: migrating oxygen atoms (or vacancies) are responsible for the observed switching and storage of charge. The results, which were published online by the journal Science on 15 April, point the way to new ferroelectric materials. https://phys.org/news/2021-04-oxygen-migration-enables-ferroelectricity-nanoscale.html Nanomaterials Fri, 16 Apr 2021 08:40:30 EDT news537781226