The 500 phases of matter: Entering a new phase

(Phys.org)—Forget solid, liquid, and gas: there are in fact more than 500 phases of matter. In a major paper in today's issue of Science, Perimeter Faculty member Xiao-Gang Wen reveals a modern reclassification of all of ...

Nanotube-based terahertz polarizer nears perfection

(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at Rice University are using carbon nanotubes as the critical component of a robust terahertz polarizer that could accelerate the development of new security and communication devices, sensors ...

Is random lasing possible with a cold atom cloud?

(PhysOrg.com) -- Random lasing, Robin Kaiser tells PhysOrg.com, is like standard lasing, with a little bit of a twist: “You don’t know the direction the photons will go, as you do with a more standard laser. This is because ...

Physicists crack another piece of the glass puzzle (w/ Video)

(Phys.org)—When it comes to physics, glass lacks transparency. No one has been able to see what's happening at the molecular level as a super-cooled liquid approaches the glass state – until now. Emory University physicists ...

Quantum cycles power cold-atom pump

The idea of a pump is at least as old as the ancient Greek philosopher and scientist Archimedes. More than 2000 years ago, Archimedes allegedly invented a corkscrew pump that could lift water up an incline with the turn of ...

Iron-based superconductors exhibit s-wave symmetry

(Phys.org) -- Condensed-matter physicists the world over are in hot pursuit of a comprehensive understanding of high-temperature superconductivity, not just for its technological benefits but for the clues it holds to strongly ...

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