Recent Articles
Focus: Video—Tunable Origami
A folding pattern produces a metamaterial with properties that can be tuned over a wide range. Read More »
Synopsis: An Airless Test for 2D Superconductors
Researchers repurpose a scanning tunneling microscope to measure the Meissner effect in 2D films kept under vacuum, allowing for confirmation of superconductivity. Read More »
Arts & Culture: Turbulence in The Starry Night
Researchers analyzing Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night show that its swirling structures have turbulent properties matching those observed in the molecular clouds that give birth to stars. Read More »
Synopsis: Drops Bounce Inside Liquids
Oil drops falling through a layered liquid with ethanol at the top and water at the bottom repeatedly jump inside the fluid. Read More »
Synopsis: Noise-Induced Transitions in Earth’s Climate
Calculations show that small fluctuations in solar radiation could cause a transition between a warm Earth and an icy Earth. Read More »
Synopsis: Quantum Optomechanics in a Liquid
Quantum optomechanical effects have been observed for the first time using a liquid—superfluid helium—confined in an optical cavity. Read More »
Focus: More Voltage from Bending Silicone Rubber
The voltage generated by bending a flexible material is usually small, but a new trick can dramatically increase the effect. Read More »
Synopsis: Explaining Light Ion Production in High-Energy Collisions
Pions could catalyze reactions between protons and neutrons, allowing the stable production of deuterons in high-energy ion-ion collisions. Read More »
Viewpoint: Phonons Hum a Magnetochiral Tune
A chiral material exposed to a magnetic field allows phonons to travel faster in one direction than another, an effect that might be used to create an acoustic diode. Read More »
