Browse Physics

An old problem in solid-state physics is the difficulty of theory to account accurately for the heat capacity of solids close to their melting points. Ab initio calculations that can now better reconcile theory with experiment are poised to make such accurate predictions about new materials, it may not even be necessary to grow them.

A crystal of buckyballs and loosely-bound lithium conducts electricity extremely well–possibly well enough to improve future lithium-ion batteries.

The addition of tellurium helps to grow large single crystals of an iron-based superconductor.

The field of multiferroics has greatly expanded in the last few years, particularly with the discovery of so many different types of multiferroic materials. This review organizes these materials according to the microscopic origin of their properties and explores how we can expect to find similar multiferroic behavior in systems that we have been studying all along.

Diamond is famous for its exceptional hardness and structural stability. Researchers are exploring different ways to push these mechanical properties beyond their current limits.

Turning up the voltage on a machine that makes thin films leads to a sudden “runaway” increase in its output, thanks to a feedback effect.

A flash of laser light briefly excites electrons in graphite into a bonding state similar to diamond. Making the conversion complete could lead to new types of nanoscale circuits.

A century-old empirical law relates the number of times a material will survive a repeated stress to the size of the stress. A new model connects this law with steadily accumulating damage at the microscale.

An electric field could prevent a stressed material from developing cracks, according to a new theory. The field could nudge atoms moving around on the surface and thereby flatten out undulations that can grow into cracks.

A new porous material changes shape in response to a magnetic field and could be lighter and cheaper than others on the market.

Experiments with tiny beads mimicking atoms shed light on the mysterious atomic-scale rearrangements that occur when molten glass solidifies.

New details of the microscopic architecture of mother-of-pearl suggest how this material could have grown to be so strong.

A theory proposes a new way in which a material could allow magnetic and electric fields to influence one another–a property with great potential for new devices.

Quasicrystals–orderly but not-quite-crystalline structures–have mostly appeared in solids, but researchers have now made a larger-scale version with polymers.

Researchers demonstrated a tiny memory element controlled by lasers that can switch among four states, rather than the usual two.

A new theory explains the force produced by a drastically stretched rubber band. The standard theory works only for modest stretching.

A simpler neutron technique creates 3-dimensional images of metal objects and distinguishes one material from another.

With an ordinary laser and lens, a team heated a crystal at a record 10^18 degrees per second and precisely measured the properties of the blast.

A few atoms in uranium can vibrate energetically without disturbing neighboring atoms.

A device that precisely controls crystallization could help chemists and designers of novel materials.