Improving measurements of the kilogram

Until 2018, the SI unit of mass, the kilogram, was defined as the mass of a real object: the International Prototype Kilogram, kept in a secure facility in the outskirts of Paris. On November 16, 2018, the kilogram was given ...

Quantum sensor can detect electromagnetic signals of any frequency

Quantum sensors, which detect the most minute variations in magnetic or electrical fields, have enabled precision measurements in materials science and fundamental physics. But these sensors have only been capable of detecting ...

Wannier-Stark localization achieved in polycrystals

Scientists from Paderborn University, the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research and the University of Konstanz have succeeded in achieving a rare quantum state. They are the first to have demonstrated Wannier-Stark localization ...

Nylon finally takes its place as a piezoelectric textile

Nylon might seem the obvious go-to material for electronic textiles—not only is there an established textiles industry based on nylon, but it conveniently has a crystalline phase that is piezoelectric—tap it and you get ...

Stacking and twisting graphene unlocks a rare form of magnetism

Since the discovery of graphene more than 15 years ago, researchers have been in a global race to unlock its unique properties. Not only is graphene—a one-atom-thick sheet of carbon arranged in a hexagonal lattice—the ...

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