Gravitational waves, first detected in 2016, offer a new window on the universe, with the potential to tell us about everything from the time following the Big Bang to more recent events in galaxy centers.
Astronomy
May 9, 2019
84
2702
In physics, as in life, it's always good to look at things from different perspectives.
Condensed Matter
Apr 27, 2022
0
1600
What is light made of: waves or particles? This basic question has fascinated physicists since the early days of science. Quantum mechanics predicts that photons, particles of light, are both particles and waves simultaneously. ...
Quantum Physics
Nov 1, 2012
284
0
Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology are first to show the use of sound to communicate with an artificial atom. They can thereby demonstrate phenomena from quantum physics with sound taking on the role of light. ...
Quantum Physics
Sep 11, 2014
3
1
How did the universe begin? And what came before the Big Bang? Cosmologists have asked these questions ever since discovering that our universe is expanding. The answers aren't easy to determine. The beginning of the cosmos ...
Astronomy
Jan 25, 2016
74
3590
We can frequently find in our daily lives a localized wave structure that maintains its shape upon propagation—picture a smoke ring flying in the air. Similar stable structures have been studied in various research fields ...
Optics & Photonics
Jan 19, 2023
1
5587
(Phys.org) —In the strange world of quantum mechanics, the vacuum state (sometimes referred to as the quantum vacuum, simply as the vacuum) is a quantum system's lowest possible energy state. While not containing physical ...
A Princeton University-led team of scientists has shown how electrons moving in certain solids can behave as though they are a thousand times more massive than free electrons, yet at the same time act as speedy superconductors.
General Physics
Jun 13, 2012
33
1
Since the 1970s, astronomers and physicists have been gathering evidence for the presence in the universe of dark matter: a mysterious substance that manifests itself through its gravitational pull. However, despite much ...
Astronomy
Oct 5, 2018
71
386
This week, researchers proved empirically that life isn't fair. Also, you'll notice that, in a superhuman display of restraint, I managed to write a paragraph about the simulated universe hypothesis without once referencing ...
