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. How could we noninvasively distinguish between healthy and cancerous tissue? And how could we increase the speed of wireless communications? These two seemingly unrelated questions may share the same answer: terahertz (THz) light. Spanning frequencies between 0.3 and 20 THz, THz light interacts with matter without causing damage and allows for faster data transfer than radio waves. It is thus ideal for advancing many applications in biomedicine and telecommunications, for which simple yet sensitive and fast detectors are needed. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-graphene-plasmon-cavities-enable-advanced.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 23 Jun 2026 18:20:03 EDT news701446621 Researchers at European XFEL, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), Rostock University and other collaborating institutions have used high-precision experiments to demonstrate that the most widely used models for the behavior of electrons in warm dense matter are inaccurate. Warm dense matter is challenging to study, but also is of key importance for a plethora of research, including the investigation of planetary interiors, materials science and laser fusion experiments. The study is published in Physical Review Letters. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-upends-beliefs-electrons-dense.html Plasma Physics Mon, 22 Jun 2026 18:20:06 EDT news701359922 How does light turn into motion within a metal? A team of researchers from European XFEL, the University of Potsdam and other participating institutions has shown that ultrashort optical laser pulses can trigger extremely rapid lattice vibrations in periodically layered metal structures—not primarily by heating the atomic lattice, but through the pressure exerted by hot electrons. The results are published in Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-laser-pulses-layered-metals-vibrating.html Condensed Matter Thu, 18 Jun 2026 17:10:03 EDT news701018641 Aeron Tynes Hammack, a physicist by training and currently interim facility director of the Nanofabrication Facility at the Molecular Foundry, likes to work with nanoscale objects to better understand the world and solve problems—but he doesn't restrict himself to one category of tiny stuff. He helps develop qubits for quantum computers and viral therapies to combat infectious diseases. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-qa-combating-antibiotic-resistance-nanotechnology.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 09 Jun 2026 18:20:06 EDT news700241042 Physicists from Emory University have led work to develop a microscopic, nonlinear light source that can be switched on, off or tuned to a particular intensity by an electrical "knob." The paper is published in the journal Optica, and could aid in the design of smaller, more flexible technologies for communications, sensing and quantum computing. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-electrical-knob-tune-intensity-nanoscale.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 28 May 2026 17:50:01 EDT news699207961 Gold nanoparticles, which are about one-thousandth the width of a human hair, can convert light they receive from a laser into heat. This capacity, known in medicine as photothermal therapy, is effective at destroying cancer cells without harming the surrounding healthy tissue. It's one of the techniques the scientific community is exploring in depth as an alternative chemotherapy, as it is less aggressive. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-shell-gold-nanoparticles-laser-longer.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 19 May 2026 15:00:08 EDT news698415541 To capture a crisp image of a hummingbird in flight, which can flap its wings up to 200 times per second, a photographer needs a camera with an extremely fast shutter speed. But what if your target is smaller than a single chromosome and can travel at velocities approaching lightspeed? Conventional cameras, no matter how advanced, are limited by the nature of light. You would need a special device and an innovative method to film such a tiny, speedy subject. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-chemists-capture-hybrid-particles-distances.html Nanophysics Mon, 04 May 2026 15:40:09 EDT news697119482 Today, I want to walk you through a deceptively simple innovation from the lab at Loughborough University (PI: Prof Marco Peccianti): what happens when we decorate a spintronic heterostructure with a sparse layer of plasmonic nanoparticles? This isn't just a lab curiosity—it's a step toward making terahertz sources more efficient, compact, and practical for real-world applications like high-speed communications, noninvasive imaging, and advanced spectroscopy. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-sprinkling-nanoparticles-spintronics.html Condensed Matter Mon, 20 Apr 2026 18:00:06 EDT news695895133 Light, as we usually conceive of it, is defined by the astonishing velocity at which it moves from one point to another. For example, in just one second, light can travel most of the distance between Earth and the moon. This property is what makes light useful for communication, which we expect to happen at lightning speed in the modern age. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-gold-nanorod-struck-center-electron.html Nanophysics Mon, 13 Apr 2026 09:40:01 EDT news695289305 Tiny robots—around 50 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair—open up fascinating possibilities: they enable the controlled manipulation of objects far too small for human hands. This brings us closer to a long-standing dream—the direct interaction with the microscopic world. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-nanoscale-robotic-cleaner-capture-bacteria.html Bio & Medicine Sat, 11 Apr 2026 14:00:02 EDT news694867949 Light can carry angular momentum in two distinct ways. One comes from polarization, which describes how the electric field rotates. The other comes from the shape of the wavefront itself, which can twist like a corkscrew as it travels. This second form, known as orbital angular momentum, has attracted wide interest because it allows light to encode information, interact with matter in new ways, and probe physical and biological systems. Despite this promise, producing well-defined twisted light in free space remains technically challenging, especially when the light originates from small or localized sources. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-chiral-metasurfaces-free-space.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 31 Mar 2026 18:10:08 EDT news694195502 Just as an antenna interacts with radio waves, light interacts with metallic nanostructures. Therefore, understanding how a structure influences field oscillations provides valuable insights into the structure's physical properties. An international research team, including scientists from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL), is investigating the changes in field oscillations that occur when light interacts with indium tin oxide (ITO) nanocrystals. This will deepen our understanding of how the interaction between light and these nanocrystals depends on time. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-fieldoscopy-reveals-femtosecond-optical-nm.html Nanophysics Thu, 26 Mar 2026 22:20:01 EDT news693760638 Scientists have created the first microlasers capable of detecting individual molecules and even single atomic ions, a breakthrough that could significantly advance early disease diagnosis and molecular-scale medical testing. Researchers at the University of Exeter's Living Systems Institute have published their work in Nature Photonics. The paper opens up new possibilities for microlaser biosensing technology, including "lab-on-a-chip" technology capable of instant medical testing and diagnosis. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-microlasers-capable-individual-molecules-ions.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 25 Mar 2026 06:00:05 EDT news693565580 Diagnosing some diseases could be as easy as breathing into a tube. MIT engineers have developed a test to detect disease-related compounds in a patient's breath. The new test could provide a faster way to diagnose pneumonia and other lung conditions. Rather than sit for a chest X-ray or wait hours for a lab result, a patient may one day take a breath test and get a diagnosis within minutes. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-nanoparticles-enable-minute-pneumonia.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 16 Mar 2026 17:00:03 EDT news692889541 A research team at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, has developed new laser technology that could lead to tiny, cost-effective biosensors. The sensors integrate lasers and optics together on a centimeter-sized chip, which could move testing from hospitals to patients' homes. This, in turn, would free up hospital beds and reduce visits to clinics. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-miniature-laser-technology-lab-home.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 10 Mar 2026 09:40:05 EDT news692350801 Researchers have found a way to use solar energy to power a key chemical reaction that drives many manufacturing industries. This new method can significantly reduce the energy required to run these operations, eliminate harsh oxidizing byproducts and minimize carbon emissions. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-carbon-footprint-chemical-lasers-solar.html Materials Science Thu, 05 Mar 2026 17:00:01 EST news691946389 Adjusting the size and chemistry of nanocrystals within an ultrathin surface can speed up light-driven chemical reactions, according to a University of Michigan Engineering study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. The new method works by matching the crystals' electronic rhythm to the internal vibrations of target molecules. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-tuned-nanocrystals-driven-reactions-molecular.html Nanophysics Tue, 17 Feb 2026 11:46:49 EST news690551162 You can tell a lot about a material based on the type of light shining at it: Optical light illuminates a material's surface, while X-rays reveal its internal structures and infrared captures a material's radiating heat. Now, MIT physicists have used terahertz light to reveal inherent, quantum vibrations in a superconducting material, which have not been observable until now. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-terahertz-microscope-reveals-motion-superconducting.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 04 Feb 2026 11:00:06 EST news689415002 By changing the physical structure of gold at the nanoscale, researchers can drastically change how the material interacts with light—and, as a result, its electronic and optical properties. This is shown by a study from Umeå University published in Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-reshaping-gold-electronic-optical-properties.html Nanophysics Mon, 02 Feb 2026 14:46:38 EST news689265961 Researchers have developed a new strategy to overcome a long-standing limitation in plasmonic loss by reshaping light–matter interactions through substrate engineering. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-spectral-slimming-yields-ultranarrow-plasmons.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 27 Jan 2026 14:28:26 EST news688746481 Sunbeams contain a lot of energy. But current technology for harvesting solar power doesn't capture as much as it could. Now, in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, researchers report that gold nanospheres, named supraballs, can absorb nearly all wavelengths in sunlight—including some that traditional photovoltaic materials miss. Applying a layer of supraballs onto a commercially available electricity converter demonstrated that the technology nearly doubled solar energy absorption compared to traditional materials. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-gold-supraballs-solar-energy-absorption.html Nanomaterials Tue, 27 Jan 2026 12:47:20 EST news688740421 A nanostructure made of silver and an atomically thin semiconductor layer can be turned into an ultrafast switching mirror device that may function as an optical transistor—with a switching speed around 10,000 times faster than an electronic transistor. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-ultrafast-atomically-thin-semiconductors-rapid.html Nanophysics Wed, 21 Jan 2026 14:35:57 EST news688228502 Ammonia (NH3) is a colorless chemical compound comprised of nitrogen and hydrogen that is widely used in agriculture and in industrial settings. Among other things, it is used to produce fertilizers, as well as cleaning products and explosives. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-sunlight-driven-nanoparticles-enable-cleaner.html Analytical Chemistry Wed, 31 Dec 2025 09:40:01 EST news685704860 Researchers from CIC nanoGUNE, in collaboration with the Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC) and the Center for Materials Physics (CFM), have experimentally observed and theoretically verified flat-band ultrastrong coupling between optical phonons and surface plasmon polaritons. Published in Nature Materials, the study reveals a previously unexplored regime of light–matter interaction with potential applications in polariton-driven chemistry, materials science, nanophotonics, and quantum engineering. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-flat-band-ultrastrong-coupling-phonons.html Nanophysics Thu, 18 Dec 2025 11:40:01 EST news685278560 Using proteins from a common tobacco plant virus, McGill chemistry researchers have developed a simple, eco-friendly way to arrange gold nanoparticles into ultrathin sheets, strengthening the particles' optical properties. The result: cheaper, safer materials for solar panels, sensors and advanced optical devices. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-virus-proteins-gold-nanoparticles-eco.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 08 Dec 2025 12:44:21 EST news684420126 A particle accelerator that produces intense X-rays could be squeezed into a device that fits on a table, my colleagues and I have found in a new research project. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-tabletop-particle-medicine-materials-science.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 13 Nov 2025 04:30:01 EST news682229166 A research team at the City University of New York and the University of Texas at Austin has discovered a way to make previously hidden states of light, known as dark excitons, shine brightly, and control their emission at the nanoscale. Their findings, published today in Nature Photonics, open the door to faster, smaller, and more energy-efficient technologies. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-scientists-dark-exciton-states-nanotube.html Nanophysics Wed, 12 Nov 2025 11:05:03 EST news682167901 Using ultra-fast laser beams, a team from the Irradiated Solids Laboratory has designed an experiment that allows both the creation of nanometric cavities in metal films and their study using several advanced microscopy techniques. The results have been published in Physical Review Letters. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-ultra-fast-laser-platform-enables.html Nanophysics Wed, 29 Oct 2025 15:17:03 EDT news680969822 In the right combinations and conditions, two-dimensional materials can host intriguing and potentially valuable quantum phases, like superconductivity and unique forms of magnetism. Why they occur, and how they can be controlled, is of considerable interest among physicists and engineers. Research published in Nature Physics reveals a previously hidden feature that could explain how and why enigmatic quantum phases emerge. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-2d-devices-hidden-cavities-electronic.html Condensed Matter Mon, 20 Oct 2025 05:00:11 EDT news679923998 Researchers at Michigan State University have discovered how to "draw" on demand the crystals used in many crucial technologies, from solar panels and LED lighting to medical imaging. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-lasers-gold-nanoparticles-enable-demand.html Nanophysics Tue, 14 Oct 2025 12:30:39 EDT news679649521