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 use tightly focused laser beams to image biological samples, shape materials with microscopic precision and generate displays. But using those beams in three dimensions requires more than sweeping light from side to side, as the light must also rapidly refocus at different depths. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-tiny-mirror-3d-microscopes-smaller.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 31 Aug 2026 12:20:02 EDT news707393521 More accurate navigation systems and improved wireless communications may not come from traditional electronics, but rather from atoms. Researchers at Penn State and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a new way to build tinier, smarter glass sensors filled with highly precise and stable atoms. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-glass-cells-atoms-path-smarter.html Nanophysics Fri, 26 Jun 2026 15:40:04 EDT news701699108 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 MIT researchers have demonstrated a low-cost design for specialized electronic nozzles, called triaxial electrospray emitters, that could be used to manufacture time-release drug-delivery particles or self-healing materials efficiently and at scale. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-3d-nozzle-array-production-drug.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 09 Jun 2026 12:20:05 EDT news700222923 Heart to the left. Liver to the right. That's where you'll find these organs in a healthy human body, but surprisingly, in some people, the heart is on the right and the liver on the left. This normal or abnormal asymmetry can be traced back to your embryonic stage. In the early days of your development, a small fluid-filled cavity known as an embryonic node forms in your embryo. Inside, tiny micro-hairs known as cilia create a flow pattern that steers where organs grow in your body. However, the science behind this flow process has remained a mystery until now. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-tiny-rotating-hairs-microscopic-cavity.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 26 Mar 2026 17:00:04 EDT news693750242 Scientists at TU Delft have designed a nanostring that, when poked, doesn't lose its energy to the environment immediately. Instead, the energy leaks out within the string, triggering a cascade of distinct vibrational modes. For the first time, researchers have observed this cascade reaching all the way up to the fifth mode, while only actuating the first mode. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-nanostring-scientists-uncover-energy-cascades.html Nanophysics Tue, 03 Mar 2026 19:20:01 EST news691774321 Chemists in South Korea have created a stable color-changing sensor that displays an easily quantifiable response to the pH of its surroundings. Published in Microsystems & Nanoengineering, Dong-Hwan Kim and colleagues at Sungkyunkwan University say their approach could pave the way for more reliable, affordable pH measurements across a broad range of real-world scenarios. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-nanopigment-sensor-tracks-ph-ten.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 24 Feb 2026 13:40:01 EST news691147847 Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS has developed a new technology that makes pH measurements significantly more robust, simple, and reliable. Instead of the traditional, often error-prone reference electrodes, a durable chip is now used. This chip can be stored dry, is pressure-resistant, and easily integrated into compact devices. Initial test kits are already available for rapid use in medical, biological, agricultural, and environmental applications. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-chip-ph-easier-devices-robust.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 12 Feb 2026 16:32:14 EST news690136321 Extracellular vesicles and particles are central to how cells communicate, especially in cancer, where they help shape metastasis and treatment resistance. However, most existing methods analyze vesicles in bulk, masking differences between individual cells. Some single-vesicle techniques offer particle-level detail but lose information about the cell that produced them. Other single-cell platforms face practical limits, such as short culture times or signal mixing between cells. These limitations make it difficult to study how individual cells behave over time. Based on these challenges, there is a clear need for technologies that can culture single cells long-term while isolating and analyzing the vesicles each cell produces. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-cell-microdevice-isolates-profiles-extracellular.html Bio & Medicine Sun, 01 Feb 2026 22:40:01 EST news688915996 Transparent electrodes transmit light while conducting electricity and are increasingly important in bioelectronic and optoelectronic devices. Their combination of high optical transparency, low electrical resistance, and mechanical flexibility makes them well suited for applications such as displays, solar cells, and wearable or implantable technologies. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-defect-free-graphene-electrodes-transparent.html Nanomaterials Mon, 26 Jan 2026 22:50:01 EST news688653784 A new technology has been developed that enables cuffless noninvasive blood pressure monitoring by using ultrasonic to track real-time changes in vascular diameter—without the need for a traditional cuff. The technology is expected to serve as a core component in future wearable health care devices and smart medical monitoring platforms. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-ultrasonic-sensor-capable-enables-cuffless.html Bio & Medicine Thu, 08 Jan 2026 11:23:41 EST news687093781 Counterfeit or low-quality products—such as olive oil made from dyed rapeseed oil—are often difficult or impossible to identify at a glance. A mobile gas chromatography sensor system is now being developed to help detect falsely labeled products directly on site. Three Fraunhofer institutes are working together to create an affordable, easy-to-use device that enables even non-experts to perform rapid, on-the-spot assessments. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-rapid-site-food-fraud.html Analytical Chemistry Mon, 05 Jan 2026 10:07:26 EST news686829994 From cells that migrate to tissues that heal, nature abounds with systems capable of sensing and adapting to their surroundings. Replicating this level of adaptability in synthetic systems has remained a grand challenge in chemistry and materials science. Most artificial materials, though inspired by biology, still react to only one stimulus and lack the integrated responsiveness that characterizes living matter. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-supramolecular-robotics-enables-soft-materials.html Biochemistry Wed, 29 Oct 2025 14:10:01 EDT news680963985 Quantum defects are tiny imperfections in solid crystal lattices that can trap individual electrons and their "spin" (i.e., the internal angular momentum of particles). These defects are central to the functioning of various quantum technologies, including quantum sensors, computers and communication systems. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-strain-readout-quantum-technologies.html Quantum Physics Fri, 10 Oct 2025 06:30:01 EDT news679233299 Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have made light-powered gears on a micrometer scale. This paves the way for the smallest on-chip motors in history, which can fit inside a strand of hair. The research is published in the journal Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-powered-gears-strand-hair.html Nanophysics Thu, 18 Sep 2025 09:47:03 EDT news677407621 For the past five years, researchers at Leipzig University have been working on fundamentally new methods for selectively assembling gaseous, charged molecular fragments into new, complex molecules. The synthesized substances are deposited onto surfaces. This innovative process opens up new perspectives for applications in modern nanoelectronics and sensor technology. It also offers new avenues of research across various scientific disciplines—from catalyst research to medical applications. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-method-molecular-fragments-advanced-thin.html Nanomaterials Mon, 23 Jun 2025 11:35:03 EDT news669897301 In the "Mission: Impossible" films, superspy Ethan Hunt—played by Tom Cruise—gets orders from his superiors on various devices that self-destruct in five seconds. Could electronics disintegrate into nothing in real life? Binghamton University Professor Seokheun "Sean" Choi has researched disposable "papertronics" over the past 20 years, but the hardest part about making so-called transient electronics is the battery. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-probiotic-powered-dissolvable-battery-acidic.html Bio & Medicine Fri, 06 Jun 2025 11:46:03 EDT news668429161 Resonantly tunable quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) are high-performance laser light sources for a wide range of spectroscopy applications in the mid-infrared (MIR) range. Their high brilliance enables minimal measurement times for more precise and efficient characterization processes and can be used, for example, in chemical and pharmaceutical industries, medicine or security technology. Until now, however, the production of QCL modules has been relatively complex and expensive. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-semi-automated-efficient-quantum-cascade.html Condensed Matter Tue, 03 Jun 2025 17:00:03 EDT news668188801 Blood vessels are like big-city highways; full of curves, branches, merges, and congestion. Yet for years, lab models replicated vessels like straight, simple roads. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-customizable-chips-mimic-real-life.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 27 May 2025 16:20:03 EDT news667581601 Microelectromechanical system (MEMS) optical modulators are crucial in next-generation technologies such as free-space optical communication and LiDAR, but existing designs struggle with balancing aperture size, efficiency, and speed. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-large-aperture-mems-modulator-paves.html Nanophysics Tue, 06 May 2025 13:22:20 EDT news665756530 For decades, traditional lithography techniques—such as electron beam lithography and nanoimprinting—have struggled to meet the demand for ultra-fine, high-aspect-ratio structures in general. Similar difficulty also applies to metal-based radio-frequency (RF) components. Issues like poor thickness control, uneven sidewalls, and material limitations have constrained performance and scalability. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-deep-trench-3d-enables-gen.html Nanophysics Tue, 06 May 2025 13:22:10 EDT news665756519 A novel study has unveiled a technique that enhances stem cell therapy for neurodegenerative diseases by combining magnetic guidance with localized ultrasound stimulation. This approach successfully navigates magnetically loaded stem cells to specific brain regions and promotes their differentiation into neurons using a miniaturized ultrasound device. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-ultrasound-microrobots-team-boost-stem.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 30 Apr 2025 16:34:04 EDT news665249642 In an advance in microsensor technology, researchers have unveiled an ultra-sensitive gas detection method using surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensors enhanced by the physics of exceptional points (EPs). These EPs, phenomena from non-Hermitian systems where eigenvalues and eigenvectors converge, allow for amplified signal response. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-exceptional-boost-sensitivity-surface-acoustic.html Nanophysics Wed, 30 Apr 2025 03:34:35 EDT news665202863 Nuclear fusion is a source of great hope for future energy security, with this field being explored in research reactors around the world. Accurately detecting their performance requires measurement systems that supply valid data even under extreme conditions. And the centerpiece of those systems are the bolometers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Microengineering and Microsystems IMM. Experts from the institute will be presenting their sophisticated sensors at the joint Fraunhofer booth (Hall 2, Booth B24) at this year's Hannover Messe trade show from March 31 to April 4. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-sophisticated-sensors-precision-fusion.html Plasma Physics Mon, 31 Mar 2025 14:29:03 EDT news662650141 Imagine walking into your kitchen and instantly knowing if the fish you bought yesterday is still fresh—or entering an industrial site with sensors that immediately alert you to hazardous gas leaks. This isn't science fiction—it's the promise behind our newly developed nanomechanical sensor array, a powerful tool we've created to detect and analyze complex gases in real-time. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-nanomechanical-gas-sensor-arrays-smarter.html Nanomaterials Mon, 31 Mar 2025 10:00:05 EDT news662633617 A cutting-edge humidity sensing system has been unveiled, capable of monitoring human behaviors in real-time through the detection of respiratory patterns. This breakthrough technology integrates a highly sensitive humidity sensor with a thermistor and micro-heater, enabling exceptional accuracy in behavior recognition. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-smart-humidity-sensor-human-behavior.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 11 Mar 2025 13:30:50 EDT news660918643 A team of researchers at the George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing at Rice University has developed an innovative artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled, low-cost device that will make flow cytometry—a technique used to analyze cells or particles in a fluid using a laser beam—affordable and accessible. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-harnessing-gravity-microfluidic-device-rapid.html Bio & Medicine Fri, 28 Feb 2025 13:12:04 EST news659970721 A new review article unveils the world of flexible micromachined ultrasound transducers (MUTs), an emerging technology at the intersection of wearables, ultrasound, and MEMS. These cutting-edge devices, which include both piezoelectric (PMUT) and capacitive (CMUT) variants, can offer flexibility and user-friendly health care solutions. Capable of conforming to the body's contours, flexible MUTs can enable continuous monitoring and targeted stimulation. The study dives deep into the fabrication methods, performance benchmarks, and potential applications of these revolutionary devices. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-emerging-biomedical-ultrasound-tech-flexible.html Bio & Medicine Fri, 21 Feb 2025 13:44:42 EST news659367878 Scientists have created a new way to quickly and minimally invasively detect glucose using microneedles. These swellable hydrogel microneedles extract substantial amounts of skin fluid in just five minutes, a less invasive alternative to the finger-prick blood tests. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-micro-vibration-microneedles-paving-rapid.html Bio & Medicine Thu, 20 Feb 2025 02:51:47 EST news659242298 Researchers have developed a freely available droplet microfluidic component library, which promises to transform the way microfluidic devices are created. This innovation, based on low-cost rapid prototyping and electrode integration, makes it possible to fabricate microfluidic devices for under $12 each, with a full design-build-test cycle completed within a single day. The components are biocompatible, high-throughput, and capable of performing multistep workflows, such as droplet generation, sensing, sorting, and anchoring, all critical for automating microfluidic design and testing. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-microfluidic-component-library-enables-rapid.html Nanophysics Tue, 18 Feb 2025 16:49:03 EST news659119741