Physics - Browse Physics

101.

Focus

Molten Metal Magnet

Phys. Rev. Focus 19, 3 (2007) – Published January 30, 2007

A tank of stirred liquid sodium generates a magnetic field even though it’s highly turbulent–a condition closer to real dynamos in planets, stars, and galaxies, but harder to simulate in the lab.

102.

Focus

Black Holes that Don’t Trap

Phys. Rev. Focus 18, 12 (2006) – Published October 18, 2006

The radiation emitted at the edge of a black hole might exist even if the hole doesn’t possess an “event horizon” from which nothing can escape.

103.

Focus

Waves of Destruction

Phys. Rev. Focus 18, 7 (2006) – Published September 1, 2006

Computer simulations show a new way to rapidly generate large, lone ocean waves that have occasionally sunk ships.

104.

Focus

Off the Wall

Phys. Rev. Focus 17, 9 (2006) – Published March 9, 2006

Researchers measured how heat flows within a fluid undergoing rapid convection, a process that occurs in the atmosphere and in stars.

105.

Focus

Rough Skin is Good

Phys. Rev. Focus 17, 6 (2006) – Published February 17, 2006

In a wind tunnel, a plate’s surface irregularities can suppress air turbulence, suggesting possible improvements for airplane wings.

106.

Focus

Do the Nano-Locomotion

Phys. Rev. Focus 13, 27 (2004) – Published June 25, 2004

A simple nanomachine propels itself through liquid simply by changing its length.

107.

Focus

Light-Powered Jets

Phys. Rev. Focus 11, 14 (2003) – Published April 10, 2003

Researchers have created a laser-light-powered microjet smaller than the width of a human hair.

108.

Focus

Catch a Quasiperiodic Wave

Phys. Rev. Focus 11, 11 (2003) – Published March 17, 2003

Quasiperiodic waves in a liquid may help researchers understand how electrons move through quasicrystals.

109.

Focus

Fast-Growing Raindrops

Phys. Rev. Focus 11, 2 (2003) – Published January 10, 2003

Raindrops may form in clouds through a nucleation process like the one that makes bubbles in soda and sugar crystals in honey.

110.

Focus

Waves of Depression

Phys. Rev. Focus 10, 20 (2002) – Published October 29, 2002

Researchers have used liquid mercury to create the first of a new class of solitary surface waves.

111.

Focus

Lightly Filtered

Phys. Rev. Focus 10, 12 (2002) – Published September 13, 2002

A regularly spaced array of laser beams deflects particles from their usual course.

112.

Focus

Light Beam from Water Droplets

Phys. Rev. Focus 10, 1 (2002) – Published July 5, 2002

The secret to probing clouds from afar may be igniting tiny fires in their water droplets.

113.

Focus

Smoothing Out Wake Turbulence

Phys. Rev. Focus 9, 5 (2002) – Published January 28, 2002

A new scheme suggests a way of reducing the deadly wake turbulence of aircraft.

114.

Focus

Bursting the Bubble Barrier

Phys. Rev. Focus 8, 33 (2001) – Published December 17, 2001

A new way to create a stream of equally sized microscopic bubbles might be used in foam science, drugs, or food.

115.

Focus

How Raindrops Form

Phys. Rev. Focus 7, 14 (2001) – Published March 22, 2001

Swirling winds inside clouds may be one of the keys to quick formation of raindrops.

116.

Focus

Dye Doesn’t Follow Fluid Flow

Phys. Rev. Focus 7, 7 (2001) – Published February 9, 2001

A surprising effect traps dye particles within narrow bands in a tank of whirling fluid. Such focusing may influence chemical reactions and the motions of water vapor in the atmosphere.

117.

Focus

Stirring Up a Magnetic Field

Phys. Rev. Focus 5, 20 (2000) – Published May 5, 2000

Scientists have for the first time created a magnetic field in the lab by stirring up molten metal–the same way the Earth does.

118.

Focus

The Pot Gets Hotter than the Stove

Phys. Rev. Focus 5, 18 (2000) – Published April 25, 2000

An experiment on board the MIR spacecraft showed that a bubble of gas surrounded by liquid can rise to a temperature higher than that of the surrounding walls.

119.

Focus

Hot Bubbles

Phys. Rev. Focus 5, 5 (2000) – Published February 3, 2000

Physicists have taken their highest resolution look at the supersonic shock wave that emerges from gas bubbles so hot that they might create nuclear fusion.

120.

Focus

Fire on a Spinning Disk

Phys. Rev. Focus 5, 2 (2000) – Published January 17, 2000

A sprial-shaped flame appears on a heated spinning disk, contrary to the expectation of a circular flame.