Measuring forces of living cells and microorganisms

Forces exerted by a living cell or a microorganism are tiny, often no larger than a few nanonewtons. For comparison, one nanonewton is the weight of one part in a billion of a typical chocolate bar. Yet, for biological cells ...

A new way to measure energy in microscopic machines

What drives cells to live and engines to move? It all comes down to a quantity that scientists call "free energy," essentially the energy that can be extracted from any system to perform useful work. Without this available ...

Curiosity tests a new way to drill on Mars

NASA's Mars Curiosity rover has conducted the first test of a new drilling technique on the Red Planet since its drill stopped working reliably.

Method to significantly enhance optical force

Light consists of a flow of photons. If two waveguides – cables for light – are side by side, they attract or repel each other. The interaction is due to the optical force, but the effect is usually extremely small. Physicists ...

A levitated nanosphere as an ultra-sensitive sensor

Sensitive sensors must be isolated from their environment as much as possible to avoid disturbances. Scientists at ETH Zurich have now demonstrated how to remove from and add elementary charges to a nanosphere that can be ...

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