Ultracold atoms dressed by light simulate gauge theories

Our modern understanding of the physical world is based on gauge theories: mathematical models from theoretical physics that describe the interactions between elementary particles (such as electrons or quarks) and explain ...

Discovery of new mechanisms to control the flow of sound

Using a network of vibrating nano-strings controlled with light, researchers from AMOLF have made sound waves move in a specific irreversible direction and attenuated or amplified the waves in a controlled manner for the ...

A new age of 2.5D materials

Scientists are exploring new ways to artificially stack two-dimensional (2D) materials, introducing so-called 2.5D materials with unique physical properties. Researchers in Japan reviewed the latest advances and applications ...

New theory explains mystery behind fast magnetic reconnection

When magnetic field lines of opposite directions merge, they create explosions that can release massive amounts of energy. On the sun, the merging of opposing field lines causes solar flares and coronal mass ejections, giant ...

Vacuum fluctuations break topological protection

A hallmark of so-called topological quantum states is that they are protected against local perturbations. ETH physicists now demonstrate that in the paradigmatic case of the integer quantum Hall effect, vacuum fluctuations ...

Progress and prospects in magnetic topological materials

A new review paper on magnetic topological materials introduces a theoretical concept that interweaves magnetism and topology. It identifies and surveys potential new magnetic topological materials and suggests possible future ...

New insight into unconventional superconductivity

The kagome pattern, a network of corner-sharing triangles, is well known amongst traditional Japanese basket weavers—and condensed matter physicists. The unusual geometry of metal atoms in the kagome lattice and resulting ...

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