Viewpoints

Insulating Magnets Control Neighbor's Conduction

Insulating Magnets Control Neighbor’s Conduction

May 13, 2013

Arne Brataas

A newly discovered type of magnetoresistance, resulting from spin-dependent scattering at a metal-magnet interface, may potentially be used to study the magnetization in insulating magnets or to develop new spintronic devices.

Fire in a Quantum Mechanical Forest

Fire in a Quantum Mechanical Forest

May 13, 2013

Je-Geun Park and Carley Paulsen

A new experimental scheme allows the controlled generation and observation of magnetic avalanches, a cascade of spin flips that propagates through a magnetic sample like a three-dimensional fire.

Wave-Shaping Surfaces

Wave-Shaping Surfaces

May 6, 2013

Andrea Alù

Ultrathin screens made of metamaterials can bend or reshape a wave transmitted through them without generating any reflection.

Simple Structure in Complex Nuclei

Simple Structure in Complex Nuclei

May 6, 2013

John Wood

Laser spectroscopy of cadmium isotopes confirms the applicability of the nuclear shell model, even for very complex structures.

More Viewpoints

The Breaking of Brittle Materials

April 29, 2013

Toward Fractional Quantum Hall Physics with Cold Atoms

April 29, 2013

The Critical Brain

April 22, 2013

View All Viewpoints »

Synopses

synopsis image

Nanostructures Put a Spin on Light

May 16, 2013

Plasmonic nanostructures can be used to generate optical vortices with varying amounts of angular momentum.

synopsis image

Condensate in a Can

May 16, 2013

Cylindrically shaped trap allows Bose-Einstein condensate to move freely in all three directions.

synopsis image

Pool of Candidate Spin Liquids Grows

May 16, 2013

A new vanadium compound exhibits the telltale features of a quantum spin liquid—a material that resists magnetic ordering down to absolute zero.

synopsis image

Desirable Defects

May 10, 2013

Natural defect states can render nanomechanical oscillators nonlinear and allow creation of nonclassical mechanical states.

More Synopses

Round and Round in Circles

May 9, 2013

A Crackling in the Air

May 2, 2013

Let a Thousand Lasers Shine

May 2, 2013

View All Synopses »

Focus

Invisibility Cloak for Heat

Invisibility Cloak for Heat

May 10, 2013

Experimenters guide heat around a two-dimensional object without leaving a trace.

Ocean Wave Breaking Stirs Up Atmosphere

Ocean Wave Breaking Stirs Up Atmosphere

May 3, 2013

Simulations show that breaking ocean waves contribute most of their energy to the air, rather than the water, which could affect cloud formation and climate evolution.

More Focus

Windshield Cracks Hold Secrets of Impact

April 26, 2013

Model Suggests Link between Intelligence and Entropy

April 19, 2013

View All Focus »

Notes from the Editors

Condensed Matter through an AMO Lens (Video)

Condensed Matter through an AMO Lens (Video)

April 15, 2013

At the APS March meeting in Baltimore, William Phillips of the Joint Quantum Institute described the many ways that trapped atoms are being used to understand the physics of solids.

More Notes from the Editors

The Aftermath of a Controversial Idea

March 15, 2013

An Invitation from Physics

March 6, 2013

A Different Kind of Impact Factor

December 19, 2012

View All Notes from the Editors »