'Robotic soft matter' bends, rotates and crawls when hit with light
Northwestern University researchers have developed a family of soft materials that imitates living creatures.
Northwestern University researchers have developed a family of soft materials that imitates living creatures.
Materials Science
Jun 22, 2020
1
322
Laser light traveling through ornately microfabricated glass has been shown to interact with itself to form self-sustaining wave patterns called solitons. The intricate design fabricated in the glass is a type of "photonic ...
Optics & Photonics
Jun 1, 2020
0
745
Using AstroSat satellite, Indian astronomers have detected strong X-ray pulsations from an X-ray binary pulsar known as 3A 0726-260. The discovery, presented in a paper published April 26 on the arXiv pre-print repository, ...
For the first time, NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory tracked water loss from an interstellar comet as it approached and rounded the Sun. The object, 2I/Borisov, traveled through the solar system in late 2019.
Space Exploration
Apr 27, 2020
0
213
What astronomers thought was a planet beyond our solar system has now seemingly vanished from sight, suggesting that what was heralded as one of the first exoplanets to ever be discovered with direct imaging likely never ...
Astronomy
Apr 20, 2020
15
891
In the quantum realm, under some circumstances and with the right interference patterns, light can pass through opaque media.
General Physics
Jan 13, 2020
0
874
Cataclysmic variables (CVs) are binary star systems consisting of a white dwarf and a normal star companion. They irregularly increase in brightness by a large factor, then drop back down to a quiescent state. Although over ...
Optical fibres are our global nervous system, transporting terabytes of data across the planet in the blink of an eye.
Optics & Photonics
Aug 19, 2019
1
765
Insights from quantum physics have allowed engineers to incorporate components used in circuit boards, optical fibers, and control systems in new applications ranging from smartphones to advanced microprocessors. But, even ...
Quantum Physics
Aug 5, 2019
0
901
Using Earth's most powerful array of radio telescopes, astronomers have made the first observations of a circumplanetary disk of gas and dust like the one that is believed to have birthed the moons of Jupiter.
Astronomy
Jul 11, 2019
0
592