New Initiative to Help Unravel Cosmic Mysteries with Big Data
An expansive, multi-year collaboration will create new software to analyze the datasets from the upcoming Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time.
Department of Energy Announces $17.5 Million for Particle Accelerators for Science & Society and Workforce Training
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $17.5 million in funding for advanced research projects in particle accelerator science and technology as well as university-based traineeships that will build a diverse, skilled pipeline of American scientists and engineers in the fields of high energy physics accelerators and instrumentation.
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Titan-in-a-glass experiments hint at mineral makeup of Saturn moon
Titan, Saturn's largest moon, has a dense atmosphere and weather cycles like Earth. Now, researchers have recreated the moon's conditions in small glass cylinders, revealing properties of two molecules believed to exist as minerals on Titan. They will present their results at ACS Fall 2021.
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One scientist's trash is another's treasure:
While making materials samples to pursue their own research goals, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory discovered that an unwanted byproduct of their experiments was an extremely high-quality and difficult-to-obtain substance sought after by scientists researching layered materials.
Tulane scientist leads study on faster charging energy storage
A Tulane University researcher has led a team in discoveries that could result in significantly faster charging electric vehicles and portable devices such as cell phones and laptops.
A 'Hat Trick' of Honors for Arthi Jayaraman
Arthi Jayaraman leads a computational materials research lab as a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and materials science at UD. She has recently been honored by professional societies in three different disciplines, recognizing her work and its value in the fields of physics, chemistry and engineering.
In a first, scientists capture a 'quantum tug' between neighboring water molecules
Researchers have made the first direct observation of how hydrogen atoms in water molecules tug and push neighboring water molecules when they are excited with laser light.
Studying the Mechanism of Metal Extraction with Ionic Liquids
The "superheavy" elements are found only in labs. The small amounts of material available means chemists must use special techniques to study them. This research developed a new way to study the chemistry of metallic elements with extremely low concentrations of material. This may lead to better methods of recovering iridium, an element that is critical to national security and the economy.
Cosmic Rays May Be Key to Understanding Galactic Dynamics
While moving around within the gas in the interstellar medium, cosmic rays kickstart the background protons, which causes a collective plasma wave movement akin to ripples on a lake. The big question is how cosmic rays deposit their momentum into the background plasma. In Physics of Plasmas, plasma astrophysicists review recent developments within the field of studying the streaming instability triggered by cosmic rays, which likely have more impacts on galactic dynamics and the star formation cycle than previously known.
How Do Wind Turbines Respond to Winds, Ground Motion During Earthquakes?
Wind power has experienced fast growth within China during the past decade, but many wind farms are being built within regions of high seismic activity. In Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy, researchers present their work exploring the dynamic behaviors of wind turbines subjected to combined wind-earthquake loading. The group discovered that changes in the wind increase and decrease the response amplitude of the wind turbine under weak and strong earthquakes, respectively.
Turning Hazelnut Shells into Potential Renewable Energy Source
In Journal for Renewable and Sustainable Energy, researchers share their work on the physicochemical properties and antioxidant activity of wood vinegar and tar fraction in bio-oil produced from hazelnut shells pyrolysis at 400 degrees Celsius to 1,000 C. The researchers found the wood vinegar and tar left over after burning the shells contained the most phenolic substances, which laid a foundation for the subsequent research on antioxidant properties.
Nuclear Physicists Hunt for Clues of Color Transparency in Protons
Protons inside the nucleus cling to neighboring protons and neutrons. However, it may be possible to knock out protons so that they interact less with nearby particles as they exit the nucleus, a phenomenon called color transparency. Physicists have observed color transparency in two-quark particles. But physicists hunting for signs of color transparency in protons in a more complicated three-quark system recently came up empty handed.
Layered Graphene with a Twist Displays Unique Quantum Confinement in 2-D
Bilayer graphene with one of the two layers twisted displayed unique resonant electronic behavior. Understanding how electrons move in such 2-D materials could shed light on how to manipulate them for quantum computing and communication.
Interstellar Comets Like Borisov May Not be All That Rare
Astronomers calculate that the Oort Cloud may be home to more visiting objects than objects that belong to our solar system.
Cross-pollinating physicists use novel technique to improve the design of facilities that aim to harvest fusion energy
Scientists at PPPL have transferred a technique from one realm of plasma physics to another to enable the more efficient design of powerful magnets for doughnut-shaped fusion facilities known as tokamaks.
Further evidence of 200 million-year cycle for Earth's magnetic field
The findings of a new study by the University of Liverpool provides further evidence of an approximately 200-million-year long cycle in the strength of the Earth's magnetic field.
VIDEO AND TRANSCRIPT AVAILABLE: Breakthrough Cases and COVID Boosters: Live Expert Panel for August 18, 2021
Expert Q&A: Do breakthrough cases mean we will soon need COVID boosters? The extremely contagious Delta variant continues to spread, prompting mask mandates, proof of vaccination, and other measures. Media invited to ask the experts about these and related topics.
This exotic particle had an out-of-body experience; these scientists took a picture of it
Scientists at Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley have taken the clearest picture yet of electronic particles that make up a mysterious magnetic state called quantum spin liquid (QSL). The achievement could facilitate the development of superfast quantum computers and energy-efficient superconductors.
Science For All: Jim Gates Honored with 2021 Andrew Gemant Award
AIP announces theoretical physicist Sylvester James "Jim" Gates Jr. as the winner of the 2021 Andrew Gemant Award, presented to those who have made significant contributions to the cultural, artistic, or humanistic dimension of physics. Gates was selected "for instilling a deep and humanistic love of physics in generations of students, being a steadfast ambassador of science policy and the history of physics, and his persistent dedication to communicating the wonders of the field."
PPPL-hosted workshop displays substantial progress in battling fusion disruptions
The virtual ninth annual global gathering presented leading experimental and theoretical methods for avoiding or mitigating the greatest challenge to doughnut-shaped tokamak fusion devices.
Wash Your Hands For 20 Seconds: Physics Shows Why
In Physics of Fluids, researchers describe a simple model that captures the key mechanics of hand-washing, estimating the time scales on which particles, like viruses and bacteria, were removed. Particles are trapped on the rough surfaces of the hand in potential wells, as though they are at the bottom of a valley and the energy from the water flow must be high enough to get them up and out of the valley.
Combining Perovskite with Silicon, Solar Cells Convert More Energy from Sun
To fully harness the potential of sunlight, scientists have been trying to maximize the amount of energy that can be extracted from the sun. In Applied Physics Letters, researchers describe how pairing metal halide perovskites with conventional silicon leads to a more powerful solar cell that overcomes the 26% practical efficiency limit of using silicon cells alone. Perovskites fulfill all the optoelectronic requirements for a photovoltaic cell, and they can be manufactured using existing processes.
Rensselaer-Designed Experiment Operating Aboard International Space Station
A novel experiment aimed at studying the mechanics of amyloid fibrils -- a type of protein aggregation associated with diseases like diabetes, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's -- started today aboard the International Space Station (ISS), led by a team at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Physicist Mukherji awarded $1.97 million to study cellular design
Cells are the basic units of structure and function in all forms of life on Earth, from humans and animals to yeasts and bacteria. But a cell itself is made up of even smaller working pieces called organelles. Understanding how a cell commits resources to building new parts -- and eventually divides into two cells -- is the focus of a new grant for physicist Shankar Mukherji of Washington University in St.
Researchers Develop New Way to Study Neurodegenerative Diseases
Some proteins in cells can separate into small droplets like oil droplets in water, but faults in this process may underlie neurodegenerative diseases in the brains of older people. Now, Rutgers researchers have developed a new method to quantify protein droplets involved in these diseases.