Articles in 2022

The standard quantum limit bounds the precision of quantum measurements. Now, a protocol based on time-reversal operations with cold atoms overcomes that limit and achieves the greatest phase sensitivity improvement in any full Ramsey interferometer.

Measurements of the gravitational interaction between two parallel beams vibrating in bending motion enable the quantitative investigation of dynamic gravitation in the hertz regime and allow the determination of the gravitational constant.

The first step of biofilm formation is a transition from a single layer of bacteria to multiple layers. Now, there is evidence that this transition is determined by the phenotypic noise associated with cell geometry and growth rate.

Continuously changing the coupling between a magnetic impurity and a superconductor allows the observation of the reversal of supercurrent flow at the atomic scale.

Thermal fluctuations associated with higher temperatures normally destroy long-range order, but in some circumstances they can stabilize new ordered phases. This ‘order by disorder’ phenomenon has now been observed in the magnetic phases of neodymium.

Topological states characterized by Chern numbers are usually considered to be the global properties of a material. Now a spatial patchwork of different Chern insulator states is imaged in twisted bilayer graphene.

Experiments at the Joint European Torus tokamak show improved thermal ion confinement in the presence of highly energetic ions and Alfvénic instabilities in the plasma.

Fractons are particles that can only move in tandem, which substantially affects their thermalization. Below four spatial dimensions, an unconventional dynamical universality class can emerge as thermal fluctuations destroy hydrodynamic behaviour.

Uncovering structures in temporal networks requires different tools than in their static counterparts. A metric now quantifies whether the nodes with a large number of connections also tend to stay simultaneously connected for longer times.

The relation between physical properties and structure in amorphous materials is poorly understood. Simulations now show that vibrations of string-like dynamical defects likely govern the low-temperature dynamics in these systems.

Non-classical vibrations are generated and transmitted along a mechanical waveguide, providing a platform for distributing quantum information and realizing hybrid quantum devices using phonons in a solid-state system.

The mechanism that drives nematic behaviour in iron-based superconductors is still unclear. Now, nematicity and anisotropy in spin excitations are shown to disappear at the same temperature, indicating that the transition is primarily spin-driven.

The concept of quasi-symmetry—a perturbatively small deviation from exact symmetry—is introduced and leads to topological materials with strong resilience to perturbations.

Electrical readout of the state of an antiferromagnet is an important goal for spintronic applications. Now, detection of the electrical voltage created by a thermal gradient in a canted antiferromagnet suggests a route for achieving this goal.

The collective motion of malaria parasites is analyzed as a model system for active elastic matter and suggests that mechanical flexibility is favourable for parasite transmission.

Mechanical resonators combined with superconducting circuits are a promising platform for controlling non-classical mechanical states. Here this platform is used to directly measure the parity of a motional quantum state.

Cells have built-in mechanisms for checking for errors during replication, but these checkpoints can slow down reproduction. A theory accounting for optimal checkpoint strategies is presented and tested against observations in budding yeast.

Electrons in PdCoO₂ can travel a long way before being scattered, and their band structure is such that they can travel in only one of three directions. As a result, the current flow through this nanoscale conductor can be very efficient.

Drive engineering in optical systems can be used to stabilize new nonlinear phases in topological systems. Dissipatively stabilized gap solitons in a polariton lattice establish drive engineering as a resource for nonlinear topological photonics.

The efficiency of running quantum algorithms can be improved by expanding the hardware operations that a quantum computer can perform. A high-fidelity three-qubit iToffoli gate has now been demonstrated using superconducting qubits.