Catalyst keeps fruit fresh longer

(Phys.org) —Ripening fruit, vegetables, and flowers release ethylene, which works as a plant hormone. Ethylene accelerates ripening, so other unripened fruit also begins to ripen—fruit and vegetables quickly spoil and ...

Researchers demonstrate laser cooling of a semiconductor

(Phys.org)—A team of physicists working in Singapore has, for the first time, demonstrated the cooling of a semiconductor using a laser. To achieve this feat, the team, as they describe in their paper published in the journal ...

Caltech engineers invent light-focusing device

(Phys.org)—As technology advances, it tends to shrink. From cell phones to laptops—powered by increasingly faster and tinier processors—everything is getting thinner and sleeker. And now light beams are getting smaller, ...

In static friction, chemistry is key to stronger bonds

(Phys.org)—Inspired by phenomena common to both earthquakes and atomic force microscopy, University of Wisconsin–Madison materials engineers have learned that chemical reactions between two silicon dioxide surfaces cause ...

page 8 from 15