Electrons living on the edge

Scientists at the University of Tsukuba demonstrated the possibility of electrons moving as if they were massless when certain materials called "topological insulators" are irradiated with laser beams. This work may lead ...

New microchip devices produce a wide range of laser hues

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Maryland have developed a microchip technology that can convert invisible near-infrared laser light into any one of a panoply ...

A light driven proton pump in distant relative

Researchers investigated the group of microorganisms classified as Asgard archaea, and found a protein in their membrane which acts as a miniature light-activated pump. The schizorhodopsin protein draws protons into the organisms' ...

Controlling nickelate nano-switches with light

Dr. Giordano Mattoni, quantum researcher at TU Delft, and his collaborators have shown that the nano-electronic phase transition in a class of materials known as nickelates can be controlled by laser light. Their findings, ...

Quantum cocktail provides insights on memory control

Experiments based on atoms in a shaken artificial crystal made of light offer novel insight into the physics of quantum many-body systems, which might help in the development of future data-storage technologies.

Sensor boutique for early adopters

Every chemical substance absorbs a very individual fraction of infrared light. Like a human fingerprint, this absorption can be used with optical methods for identifying substances. Such methods are used in the chemical industry, ...

page 1 from 3