Browse Physics

Researchers find the source of an epidemic using relatively little information. Their technique could also help authorities track down contamination in water systems or locate problems in electrical grids.

Researchers measure the complex “shape” of individual photons, which could lead to new ways of encoding information.

The 1947 discovery of a small discrepancy in hydrogen’s atomic spectrum came at just the right time to push quantum theory forward.

Simulations show that a new technique can control the wavelength of a random laser—a type of laser that lacks mirrors and whose output has been impossible to control.

Theorists predict that the matter surrounding some black holes may be hot enough for nuclear fusion, which could generate lithium and deepen the mysteries surrounding lithium in the universe.

Surprisingly uniform layers that form in the ocean result from salt fingers—long, vertical tubes of water with salt content different from their surroundings—according to simulations.

Some droplets throw out a fine spray as they hit a liquid surface because of a hidden pattern of fluid flow.

Models show how the length of filaments in cells can be tightly controlled by balancing continual growth with shrinkage caused by molecular motors.

Gaskets and other seals can stop leaks even if the leak-preventing surfaces have just 42 percent of their area in contact at the microscopic scale, according to computer simulations.

Mysterious ripples on stalactites are explained by a theory that includes the dripping water’s fluid dynamics. The results could help researchers reconstruct ancient precipitation records.

Variations in density in an ultracold gas reveal sound waves of quantum origin.

A process for making wavy tubes in a controlled way could lead to the predictable fabrication of complex shapes.

The oscillations of a carbon nanotube can strongly affect the spin of an electron trapped on the tube, and the tube can also be affected by the spin, according to theory.

Metallic glasses, new materials that are strong and durable, are not entirely disordered on the atomic scale but can have regions of near-crystalline order.

The binding of two proteins is strongest in regions where the packing of surrounding water molecules is already disrupted.

Experiments and simulations lead to a new model for the curling of a thin strip, which could be useful for plant growth and micromechanics.

A spherically symmetric interaction force between particles can cause them to self-assemble into a surprisingly asymmetric (chiral) pattern in two dimensions, according to simulations.

A semiconductor chip that generates entangled photon pairs is friendlier to integration with other chip-based quantum components than any previous device.

Researchers propose a way to transfer quantum information between ions and electronic circuits, opening up new options for quantum computation.

Incoherent light from the sun or from an LED could cool a small object, according to two theory papers.