An international team has for the first time precisely tracked the surprisingly rapid process by which light rearranges the outermost electrons of a metal compound and turns it into an active catalyst – a substance that ...
General Physics
Apr 1, 2015
0
62
Classical phase transitions are governed by temperature. One of the most familiar examples is the phase transitions of water from solid to liquid to gas. However, other parameters govern phase transitions when temperatures ...
General Physics
Aug 10, 2020
0
74
Sitting a mile below ground in an abandoned gold mine in South Dakota is a gigantic cylinder holding 10 tons of purified liquid xenon closely watched by more than 250 scientists around the world. That tank of xenon is the ...
General Physics
Sep 15, 2022
0
170
The advent of intense ultrashort coherent light pulses has revolutionized the spectroscopy field. They allow easy observation of various nonlinear optical effects and facilitate the characterization of materials with nonlinear ...
Optics & Photonics
Feb 3, 2023
0
3
We're inching closer and closer to reliably detecting biosignatures on distant planets. Much of the focus is on determining which chemicals indicate life's presence.
Astrobiology
Nov 17, 2023
3
59
Reactions in solar panels, catalytic converters, and other devices are governed by the quick motion of electrons. To capture the movement of these electrons, scientists use pulses of extremely high energy x-rays. The challenge ...
Optics & Photonics
Apr 10, 2018
0
12
Climate change is a major global concern. Reducing carbon emissions by utilizing renewable energy sources and developing efficient energy storage systems has become a priority. Lithium-ion batteries have high energy density ...
Materials Science
Jan 5, 2023
0
16
A key obstacle to controlling on Earth the fusion that powers the sun and stars is leakage of energy and particles from plasma, the hot, charged state of matter composed of free electrons and atomic nuclei that fuels fusion ...
Plasma Physics
Jun 11, 2019
0
47
(Phys.org)—Plasmonic gold nanoparticles make pinpoint heating on demand possible. Now Rice University researchers have found a way to selectively heat diverse nanoparticles that could advance their use in medicine and industry.
Nanomaterials
Jan 3, 2013
0
0
Our search for life beyond Earth is still in its infancy. We're focused on Mars and, to a lesser extent, ocean moons like Jupiter's Europa and Saturn's Enceladus. Should we extend our search to cover more unlikely places ...
Astronomy
Dec 1, 2023
1
51
