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. Seismic data captured by ocean-bottom instruments have revealed "fossilized" traces of mantle flow beneath the Pacific Ocean's oldest preserved piece of crust. The patterns of ancient flow traced in the uppermost mantle are complicated, tracking changes in tectonic plate motion over time as well as mantle deformation around features such as a sunken remnant of the lithosphere (the crust and the uppermost brittle mantle) and upwelling hotspots. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-seismic-analysis-reveals-ancient-mantle.html Earth Sciences Thu, 08 Oct 2026 10:20:20 EDT news710673061 Physicists with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign's Grainger College of Engineering have identified a new form of superconducting behavior. Experiments on the metal uranium ditelluride reveal that Cooper pairs, the composite electron units responsible for superconductivity, can organize into nonuniform patterns that exist even when the main superconducting phase is absent. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-cooper-pairs-superconducting-critical-temperature.html Superconductivity Sat, 03 Oct 2026 07:00:01 EDT news710216698 Scientists have confirmed the existence of a predicted room temperature superconductor, while explaining the microscopic mechanism that distinguishes it from a similar one discovered several years ago. The work, published in the journal Physical Review B, offers "a theoretical blueprint for the future design of superior superconductor hydrides" the physicists write. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-scandium-electrons-room-temperature-superconductivity.html Condensed Matter Tue, 29 Sep 2026 11:30:05 EDT news709897818 When light or sound bounces around inside an oddly shaped room, its reflections can quickly become difficult to predict. But new research led by scientists at the Advanced Science Research Center at the CUNY Graduate Center (CUNY ASRC) shows that waves can behave very differently when they travel through a special class of materials. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-chaos-oddly-cavity.html General Physics Mon, 28 Sep 2026 05:00:03 EDT news709561441 Researchers at the Research Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (MANA), a center within Japan's National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), discovered that atomic-scale steps can guide superconducting vortices in an ultrathin superconductor. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-atom-high-rails-superconducting-vortices.html Condensed Matter Thu, 24 Sep 2026 15:00:01 EDT news709464377 For the first time, researchers have directly imaged the magnetization dynamics inside a spin Hall nano-oscillator—a nanoscale device that converts direct current into tunable microwave signals and is a promising building block for energy-efficient wireless communication and brain-inspired computing. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-nano-oscillator-imaged.html Nanophysics Wed, 23 Sep 2026 12:20:10 EDT news709380362 Understanding the origin, acceleration and propagation of high-energy cosmic rays has been a century-old mystery in astrophysics. Recently, joint observations from China's Einstein Probe (EP) satellite and the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) showed an extraordinarily long X-ray tail near a pulsar about 4,600 light-years (27 quadrillion miles) from Earth—one that had never before been seen in full. The tail extends about 42 light-years (250 trillion miles) and stretches in the same direction as ultrahigh-energy gamma-ray emission detected by LHAASO, with the two showing a close spatial match. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-year-ray-tail-links-pulsar.html Astronomy Tue, 22 Sep 2026 03:57:28 EDT news709268201 The position of biomineralization peptides within liposomes can influence how gold nanoparticles grow, reports a research team from the Institute of Science Tokyo. Peptides localized at the membrane interface promote branched structures, while those confined to the liposome interior favor spherical nanoparticles. The findings offer a new strategy for controlling nanoscale reaction environments in nanoparticle synthesis. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-peptide-position-gold-nanoparticles-stay.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 14 Sep 2026 16:00:04 EDT news708609646 Researchers have demonstrated that a naturally occurring mineral can serve as a low-loss optical material for next-generation broadband all–van der Waals nanophotonic components. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-muscovite-index-block-ultrathin-van.html Nanophysics Thu, 10 Sep 2026 15:00:03 EDT news708259561 Researchers at University of Tsukuba have discovered that the crystal structure of zirconia nanoparticles remains stable under uniform pressure applied from all directions but changes under anisotropic pressure. This unique property is expected to lead to new technologies for detecting and evaluating pressure anisotropy, which has been difficult to assess using conventional methods. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-pressure-anisotropy-zirconia-nanoparticles.html Materials Science Thu, 10 Sep 2026 12:40:03 EDT news708247916 (Fe0.63Ni0.3Pd0.07)3P, or FNPP, is a magnetic material that exhibits complex magnetic structures even at room temperature. This makes the material of interest for spintronics, a field that could enable data processing with significantly lower energy consumption. One potential application is novel magnetic memory devices. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-3d-magnetic-field-reveals-tune.html Condensed Matter Wed, 09 Sep 2026 15:40:02 EDT news708173941 A research team led by Professor Yong Taik Lim at the SKKU Advanced Institute of Nanotechnology (SAINT), Sungkyunkwan University, have developed an engineered nanoplatform named t-SMC (trained immunity-mediated splenic myelopoiesis converter), which precisely targets the spleen to reverse splenic myelopoiesis toward an antitumoral immune phenotype. The research is published in the journal Advanced Materials. https://phys.org/news/2026-09-bacterial-nanoplatform-reprograms-spleen-immune.html Bio & Medicine Thu, 03 Sep 2026 12:00:06 EDT news707649213 The universe is known to be expanding at an accelerating rate. Physicists typically attribute this acceleration to dark energy, a mysterious component of the universe that exerts negative pressure, causing space to expand faster. Dark energy is thought to have become the predominant influence on the universe's evolution around 3–4 billion years ago, at the beginning of what is known as the dark energy era. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-limits-phase-transitions-dark-energy.html Astronomy Tue, 25 Aug 2026 07:00:04 EDT news706783751 What happened in the first moments of the universe—before the building blocks of life and the world we know today came into existence? Physicists at the CERN research facility in Switzerland are trying to answer this question by recreating some of the extreme conditions that prevailed in the universe during its earliest history. Now, researchers from the Niels Bohr Institute, together with colleagues from the international ALICE collaboration, have come one step closer to understanding those conditions. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-big-bowling-pin-nuclei-universe.html General Physics Thu, 20 Aug 2026 12:20:05 EDT news706440544 Understanding how ions diffuse in solid materials is essential for technologies including batteries, electronics and chemical catalysts, but it has been hard for a simple reason: the materials are solids. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-tracer-exchange-reveals-ions-battery.html Nanophysics Thu, 13 Aug 2026 18:40:03 EDT news705850816 By rapidly twisting a microscopically small tip back and forth, researchers at the University of Maryland (UMD) have unlocked a new way to detect subtle changes on the surface of a material flexing in response to infrared light. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-high-res-view-2d-materials.html Nanomaterials Fri, 07 Aug 2026 18:00:03 EDT news705327588 All four main LHC experiments have found new signs that oxygen and neon collisions may create the extreme state of matter that existed during the first microseconds after the Big Bang. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-oxygen-collisions-lhc-indications-extreme.html General Physics Fri, 24 Jul 2026 10:20:01 EDT news704103827 Our universe is known to be remarkably homogeneous and isotropic. This essentially means that matter is distributed evenly throughout the universe and that it looks almost the same in all directions. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-quantum-gravitational-mechanism-universe-homogeneity.html Astronomy Mon, 13 Jul 2026 07:50:45 EDT news703147816 One of the most striking biological transitions in nature happens early in development, when an embryo transforms from a simple ball of cells into a highly ordered structure with distinct tissue layers that later develop into various organ systems. If one imagines the cells of an embryo as people, it is as if a disorderly crowd spontaneously resolves into neat rows and columns. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-embryonic-cells-boundaries.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 30 Jun 2026 05:00:01 EDT news701949602 Earlier this year, the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) completed observations that mapped 47 million galaxies across 11 billion light-years, allowing astronomers to better evaluate the large-scale structure of the visible universe. After studying these data, astronomers Francesco Sylos Labini and Marco Galoppo say the universe may not look the same in all directions. Their results, published in Nature, contradict a fundamental assumption in modern cosmology. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-universe-large-scales-desi.html Astronomy Thu, 25 Jun 2026 12:50:01 EDT news701609313 Research led by the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, along with Professor Subir Sarkar from the University of Oxford, questions the widely accepted argument that the expansion rate of the universe is accelerating and that this is driven by "dark energy" arising from the quantum vacuum. Their letter has been published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-pantheon-analysis-supernovae-universe.html Astronomy Mon, 22 Jun 2026 17:50:03 EDT news701367841 Scientists from the National Graphene Institute at the University of Manchester and Sun Yat-sen University have captured the growth of semiconducting tellurium nanostructures in liquid in real time, revealing how tiny seed particles form, grow into nanowires and compete for material as the structures develop. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-real-microscopy-reveals-semiconductor-nanowires.html Nanophysics Thu, 18 Jun 2026 11:00:15 EDT news700900801 A team of Israeli scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has developed a novel method to significantly lower the production costs of cultivated meat. The new study demonstrates that preloading plant-derived cellulose scaffolds with growth factors supports the cost-efficient proliferation and differentiation of bovine stem cells. By binding these vital proteins directly to an anisotropic, directionally frozen framework instead of dispersing them in liquid media, this method achieves high-quality tissue development using up to 10 times fewer expensive factors. Upon multi-week cultivation and subsequent pan-frying, the cell-bound constructs show partially similar mechanical and visual responses to traditional sirloin cuts. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-friendly-lab-grown-steak-realistic.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 02 Jun 2026 11:20:12 EDT news699613224 The proton sharks showed up on a Friday. In a routine data calibration meeting for NASA's Parker Solar Probe in 2020, a small group of scientists were scrolling through visualizations of their data showing solar winds. Suddenly, a weird shape flashed on the screen: Instead of the usual rounded blob of solar-wind protons, this distribution had a long, flattened, head-like structure jutting out to one side. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-solar-secret-hammerheads-space.html Astronomy Thu, 28 May 2026 16:00:04 EDT news699192481 Approximately 75% of marine organisms are bioluminescent, with specialized light-emitting organs called photophores. They use the light they produce for various purposes, like attracting mates, luring prey, or confusing predators. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-microcrystals-bioluminescent-fish-prism.html Biotechnology Tue, 26 May 2026 11:00:01 EDT news698919602 A German–Israeli research team led by Dr. Andreas Furchner has demonstrated how imaging ellipsometry enables non-destructive characterization and quality control of microstructured MXene thin films during device fabrication. The authors used two complementary ellipsometry approaches for precise, multi-scale access to key material properties. The work positions imaging ellipsometry as a powerful platform for monitoring thin-film uniformity, device integrity, and functionality throughout processing, including critical lithographic steps. The study was published in Applied Physics Letters and selected as an Editor's Pick. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-imaging-ellipsometry-tracks-mxene-thin.html Nanophysics Fri, 22 May 2026 18:40:01 EDT news698678101 Diamond is extremely valuable to science and technology not for its sparkle but for its extreme hardness, high thermal conductivity, transparency to a large fraction of the light spectrum, and a host of other exceptional properties. Two decades ago, scientists discovered another advantage: under the right conditions, diamond can become a superconductor—allowing electricity to flow through it with zero resistance. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-superconducting-diamond-uncover-path-multi.html Superconductivity Fri, 22 May 2026 14:46:44 EDT news698679858 A new chip-making technique exploits a material's crystal structure to create nanoscale patterns at room temperature directly onto hard materials used in devices, including silica. The method could make it easier to pattern chips relaying both electronic- and light-based signals, helping advance next-generation photonic and optoelectronic devices. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-stressed-crystal-nanoscale-patterns-chip.html Nanophysics Fri, 22 May 2026 11:00:07 EDT news698662022 A review paper led by researchers from the University of St Andrews highlights the transformative potential in the use of radar in polar research to predict future sea levels. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-radar-polarimetry-machine-glacial-ice.html Earth Sciences Tue, 19 May 2026 17:20:07 EDT news698421782 AI can predict rainfall intensity better than several widely used forecasting models in tests using historical weather data from India. The new model reported in the International Journal of Mobile Communications shows that combining different forms of AI, along with advanced data-cleaning and optimization techniques, can make rainfall prediction more accurate and reliable, particularly when expressed in practical categories such as light, moderate, or heavy rain. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-ai-india-rainfall-false-alarms.html Environment Thu, 14 May 2026 13:34:44 EDT news697984404