News
Historic discovery shows atoms can exist in two places at once
3+ hour, 52+ min ago (906+ words) ANU physicists observed entanglement in moving helium atoms, a step toward testing quantum physics with massive particles. (CREDIT: Adobe Stock) A cloud of helium atoms split, scattered and fell under gravity, yet still behaved as if its parts were linked....
New form of friction arises purely from magnetic interactions - no contact required
3+ day, 23+ hour ago (765+ words) A new study reveals friction can arise without contact, driven by magnetic dynamics that challenge a centuries-old physics law. (CREDIT: Shutterstock) Friction usually announces itself through contact. A chair scraping across a floor, a tire gripping asphalt, a hand sliding…...
Hard truth: Here's the reason most lithium-ion batteries fail
3+ week, 5+ day ago (692+ words) Close-up view of the top of the sample transfer box (top door open), showing that the lithium dendrite was transferred using a micromanipulator tip (a sharp silver needle) from the brown copper transmission electron microscopy grids to the Rice micromechanical…...
New chemical process uses sunlight to turn plastic pollution into vinegar
1+ mon, 23+ hour ago (777+ words) Dr. Wu demonstrates a way to tackle plastic pollution while simultaneously producing valuable chemicals. (CREDIT: University of Waterloo) Sunlight hits tiny particles of plastic floating in a clear water solution. Slowly, they begin to disappear, leaving behind a familiar household…...
New carbon-based catalyst breaks down forever chemicals using light
1+ mon, 2+ day ago (632+ words) PFAS have been used in a range of products, including non-stick cookware, cosmetics and fire extinguisher foam. (CREDIT: galaganov) Blue light, a sheet of filter paper, and a stubborn class of industrial chemicals do not sound like much of a…...
Cambridge scientists capture electrons leaping across solar materials in 18 femtoseconds
1+ mon, 3+ day ago (780+ words) Dr Pratyush Ghosh at the Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge. (CREDIT: Nordin "ati) A tiny burst of motion inside a molecule may be enough to shove an electron across a solar material almost as fast as nature permits. That is…...
Nobel prize winner invents machine that pulls water from dry air
1+ mon, 1+ week ago (634+ words) A UC Berkeley device uses a MOF and sunlight to harvest drinking water from desert air, even in Death Valley conditions. (CREDIT: Atoco) The desert doesn't look like it has anything to give. Then night falls, the air cools, and…...
New platinum-free photocatalyst turns sunlight and water into renewable energy
1+ mon, 1+ week ago (15+ words) The Brighter Side of News...
New machine captures carbon dioxide from air and converts it into usable gasoline for cars
1+ mon, 2+ week ago (930+ words) Aircela's compact machines turn air, water, and renewable electricity into real, drop-in gasoline, fully compatible with today's engines and infrastructure. (CREDIT: Aircela) On a rooftop in Manhattan's Garment District, a blue hexagonal machine hummed quietly while producing something unexpected: gasoline....
Flexible nylon film generates electricity from compression
1+ mon, 2+ week ago (942+ words) Ph D researcher Robert Komljenovic holds the tough and flexible nylon film developed at RMIT University that generates electricity when bent, pressed or compressed. (CREDIT: Will Wright, RMIT University) A thin sheet of nylon does not look like much on…...