NEWSROOM

Scientists have shown that a material treated for 40 years as a uniform, textbook superconductor is in fact a patchwork of different crystal structures throughout its bulk, using one of the latest 3D imaging techniques to see deep inside the crystal for the first time. High-temperature superconductivity is widely regarded as one of the most significant scientific discoveries of the past 40 years. It promises technologies built on electricity that flows with zero resistance an

In this illustration, photons hit a strip of superconducting wire, disrupting the electric current and registering an electric pulse. Each pulse tells researchers about the light that has hit the detector, which is beneficial for applications like biomedical imaging and astronomy. Credit: Natasha Hanacek/NIST Our everyday life is flooded with photons, the quantum building blocks of light. For cutting-edge technology, from quantum computing to deep-tissue imaging, detecting ev

Thermodynamics was built for steam engines; quantum mechanics for atoms. The two meet again in a driven cavity, where an atom absorbs and emits photons while a laser continuously supplies energy and light leaks through the mirrors. Patrick Potts and colleagues at the University of Basel treat this textbook open system as a miniature light engine. Their key step is not to count every escaping photon as waste heat. Part of that outgoing energy can still do work on another quant

Rice University researchers have shown that sub-nanometer wrinkles in graphene generate flexoelectric charge separation, reshaping local electrical behavior through curvature alone. Extreme bending produces polarization far stronger than in larger systems and may enable geometry-controlled electronics without chemical doping. Published in Advanced Materials.

A joint team from SNU, KAIST, and KBSI has identified the distinct reaction sites of silver nanocatalysts in solid oxide cells. During electricity generation the catalyst–electrode interface dominates, while during hydrogen production the nanoparticle surface is key. The finding enables new design principles for higher-efficiency green hydrogen and clean power systems. Published in Energy & Environmental Science.

Researchers at the University of Osaka have developed an autonomous solid-state nanopore that senses molecules, generates electrical signals, and retains memory of recent events without external control. Chemical reactions inside the pore continuously reshape its structure, producing molecule-specific signal patterns. Machine learning distinguished DNA nucleotides and amino acids from these signatures. Published in ACS Nano.