So long... - p665

doi:10.1038/nphys1058

...and thanks for all the physics: Bell Labs, home to major experimental and theoretical developments in twentieth-century physics, is turning away from fundamental research.

Full Text - So long... | PDF (130 KB) - So long...

A little more conversation - p667

Mark Buchanan

doi:10.1038/nphys1059

Full Text - A little more conversation | PDF (122 KB) - A little more conversation

The art of sangaku - p669

Murray T. Batchelor reviews Sacred Mathematics: Japanese Temple Geometry by Fukagawa Hidetoshi & Tony Rothman

doi:10.1038/nphys1069

Full Text - The art of sangaku | PDF (161 KB) - The art of sangaku

Long, short, entangled, cut off... - p671

doi:10.1038/nphys1060

Full Text - Long, short, entangled, cut off... | PDF (174 KB) - Long, short, entangled, cut off...

Glass dynamics: Diverging views on glass transition - p673

Gregory B. McKenna

doi:10.1038/nphys1063

Analysis of the best available data on the behaviour of a large number of glass-forming organic liquids suggests that the widespread belief that a glass ceases to flow below its transition temperature could be wrong.

Full Text - Glass dynamicsDiverging views on glass transition | PDF (144 KB) - Glass dynamicsDiverging views on glass transition

Subject Categories: Fluid dynamics | Statistical physics, thermodynamics and nonlinear dynamics

Polariton condensates: A feature rather than a bug - p673

David Snoke

doi:10.1038/nphys1064

Recent work on Bose–Einstein condensation of short-lived 'quasiparticles' in solid-state systems opens up the new field of non-equilibrium condensates.

Full Text - Polariton condensatesA feature rather than a bug | PDF (244 KB) - Polariton condensatesA feature rather than a bug

Subject Categories: Condensed-matter physics | Statistical physics, thermodynamics and nonlinear dynamics | Optical physics

Particle physics: Going to the zoo - p675

Alison Wright

doi:10.1038/nphys1061

Full Text - Particle physicsGoing to the zoo | PDF (217 KB) - Particle physicsGoing to the zoo

Subject Category: Particle physics

Optoelectronics: Electronics lightens up - pp676 - 677

Richard J. Warburton

doi:10.1038/nphys1066

A demonstration of electronic operations on photons in an excitonic integrated circuit shows a possible route towards nanoscale optoelectronics.

Full Text - OptoelectronicsElectronics lightens up | PDF (258 KB) - OptoelectronicsElectronics lightens up

Subject Categories: Electronics, photonics and device physics | Nanotechnology | Condensed-matter physics

History of science: Those names to remember - p677

Andreas Trabesinger

doi:10.1038/nphys1062

Full Text - History of scienceThose names to remember | PDF (220 KB) - History of scienceThose names to remember

Subject Category: Other physics

Coherent population trapping: Quantum optics with dots - pp678 - 679

Manfred Bayer

doi:10.1038/nphys1065

The ability to optically drive a single electron spin confined to a quantum dot from an absorbing state to a trapped coherent dark state could be the key to realizing optical switches and other quantum optical devices.

Full Text - Coherent population trappingQuantum optics with dots | PDF (133 KB) - Coherent population trappingQuantum optics with dots

Subject Categories: Electronics, photonics and device physics | Condensed-matter physics | Nanotechnology

Testing quantum correlations versus single-particle properties within Leggett's model and beyond - pp681 - 685

Cyril Branciard, Nicolas Brunner, Nicolas Gisin, Christian Kurtsiefer, Antia Lamas-Linares, Alexander Ling & Valerio Scarani

doi:10.1038/nphys1020

Quantum mechanics enables distant events to be more strongly correlated than is possible classically. The proposal for a new family of experimental tests, and the implementation of one of them, provides further insight into the nature of such non-local correlations.

First Paragraph - | Full Text - Testing quantum correlations versus single-particle properties within Leggett's model and beyond | PDF (280 KB) - Testing quantum correlations versus single-particle properties within Leggett's model and beyond | Supplementary information

Two-photon probe of the Jaynes–Cummings model and controlled symmetry breaking in circuit QED - pp686 - 691

Frank Deppe, Matteo Mariantoni, E. P. Menzel, A. Marx, S. Saito, K. Kakuyanagi, H. Tanaka, T. Meno, K. Semba, H. Takayanagi, E. Solano & R. Gross

doi:10.1038/nphys1016

Micrometre-scale superconducting circuits can act as quantum two-level systems, but unlike in their natural counterparts—such as atoms—the parameters of these 'artificial qubits' can be controlled externally. This tunability has now been used to break the symmetry of the system hamiltonian in a controlled manner.

First Paragraph - | Full Text - Two-photon probe of the Jaynes–Cummings model and controlled symmetry breaking in circuit QED | PDF (454 KB) - Two-photon probe of the Jaynes–Cummings model and controlled symmetry breaking in circuit QED

Coherent population trapping of an electron spin in a single negatively charged quantum dot - pp692 - 695

Xiaodong Xu, Bo Sun, Paul R. Berman, Duncan G. Steel, Allan S. Bracker, Dan Gammon & L. J. Sham

doi:10.1038/nphys1054

Coherent population trapping is a process by which a particle is induced to exist in a superposition of two ground states. This has now been demonstrated for an electron spin on a single quantum dot, which could prove useful in a variety of photonic and information-processing applications.

First Paragraph - | Full Text - Coherent population trapping of an electron spin in a single negatively charged quantum dot | PDF (656 KB) - Coherent population trapping of an electron spin in a single negatively charged quantum dot | Supplementary information

See also: News and Views by Bayer

Charge-density-wave origin of cuprate checkerboard visualized by scanning tunnelling microscopy - pp696 - 699

W. D. Wise, M. C. Boyer, Kamalesh Chatterjee, Takeshi Kondo, T. Takeuchi, H. Ikuta, Yayu Wang & E. W. Hudson

doi:10.1038/nphys1021

The checkerboard pattern observed in high-temperature superconductors by scanning tunnelling microscopy is widespread, but what does it mean? And what does it say about the mysterious 'pseudogap'?

First Paragraph - | Full Text - Charge-density-wave origin of cuprate checkerboard visualized by scanning tunnelling microscopy | PDF (694 KB) - Charge-density-wave origin of cuprate checkerboard visualized by scanning tunnelling microscopy

Observation of Bogoliubov excitations in exciton-polariton condensates - pp700 - 705

S. Utsunomiya, L. Tian, G. Roumpos, C. W. Lai, N. Kumada, T. Fujisawa, M. Kuwata-Gonokami, A. Löffler, S. Höfling, A. Forchel & Y. Yamamoto

doi:10.1038/nphys1034

The observation of so-called Bogoliubov excitations provides the first sign of possible superfluid behaviour in an exciton-polariton condensate.

First Paragraph - | Full Text - Observation of Bogoliubov excitations in exciton-polariton condensates | PDF (2,188 KB) - Observation of Bogoliubov excitations in exciton-polariton condensates | Supplementary information

See also: News and Views by Snoke

Quantized vortices in an exciton–polariton condensate - pp706 - 710

K. G. Lagoudakis, M. Wouters, M. Richard, A. Baas, I. Carusotto, R. André, Le Si Dang & B. Deveaud-Plédran

doi:10.1038/nphys1051

When a superfluid—such as liquid helium—is set in rotation, vortices appear in which circulation around a closed loop can take only discrete values. Such quantized vortices have now been observed in a solid-state system—a Bose–Einstein condensate made of exciton polaritons.

First Paragraph - | Full Text - Quantized vortices in an exciton–polariton condensate | PDF (431 KB) - Quantized vortices in an exciton–polariton condensate | Supplementary information

See also: News and Views by Snoke

Irreversible reorganization in a supercooled liquid originates from localized soft modes - pp711 - 715

Asaph Widmer-Cooper, Heidi Perry, Peter Harrowell & David R. Reichman

doi:10.1038/nphys1025

A simulation establishes the relationship between structural relaxation in a supercooled liquid and the low-frequency dynamics in the underlying inherent structures.

First Paragraph - | Full Text - Irreversible reorganization in a supercooled liquid originates from localized soft modes | PDF (2,257 KB) - Irreversible reorganization in a supercooled liquid originates from localized soft modes | Supplementary information

Linked and knotted beams of light - pp716 - 720

William T. M. Irvine & Dirk Bouwmeester

doi:10.1038/nphys1056

Maxwell's equations describing electric and magnetic fields limit the shapes field lines can take. But exotic solutions exist where the field lines are linked and knotted. A proposal now shows how such solutions could be realized experimentally.

First Paragraph - | Full Text - Linked and knotted beams of light | PDF (803 KB) - Linked and knotted beams of light | Supplementary information

Anatomy of plasma turbulence - pp721 - 725

Takuma Yamada, Sanae-I. Itoh, Takashi Maruta, Naohiro Kasuya, Yoshihiko Nagashima, Shunjiro Shinohara, Kenichiro Terasaka, Masatoshi Yagi, Shigeru Inagaki, Yoshinobu Kawai, Akihide Fujisawa & Kimitaka Itoh

doi:10.1038/nphys1029

Detailed analysis of multiscale structures and the identification of long-lived streamer-like wavemodes in a magnetically confined plasma provides new insight into the physics of plasma turbulence.

First Paragraph - | Full Text - Anatomy of plasma turbulence | PDF (1,697 KB) - Anatomy of plasma turbulence

Continuous-variable quantum cryptography using two-way quantum communication - pp726 - 730

Stefano Pirandola, Stefano Mancini, Seth Lloyd & Samuel L. Braunstein

doi:10.1038/nphys1018

A class of quantum-cryptographic protocols is proposed that involves back-and-forth communication between two parties. The approach is shown to provide enhanced security and should tolerate higher levels of noise and loss than conventional 'one-way' protocols.

Abstract - | Full Text - Continuous-variable quantum cryptography using two-way quantum communication | PDF (289 KB) - Continuous-variable quantum cryptography using two-way quantum communication | Supplementary information

A pumped atom laser - pp731 - 736

Nicholas P. Robins, Cristina Figl, Matthew Jeppesen, Graham R. Dennis & John D. Close

doi:10.1038/nphys1027

The experimental demonstration of a continuous and irreversible transfer of cold atoms from a 'source mode' to a 'laser mode' represents a step closer to a fully continuous atom laser.

Abstract - | Full Text - A pumped atom laser | PDF (503 KB) - A pumped atom laser

Little evidence for dynamic divergences in ultraviscous molecular liquids - pp737 - 741

Tina Hecksher, Albena I. Nielsen, Niels Boye Olsen & Jeppe C. Dyre

doi:10.1038/nphys1033

Analysis of the best available data on the behaviour of a large number of glass-forming organic liquids suggests that the widespread belief that a glass ceases to flow below its transition temperature could be wrong.

Abstract - | Full Text - Little evidence for dynamic divergences in ultraviscous molecular liquids | PDF (368 KB) - Little evidence for dynamic divergences in ultraviscous molecular liquids | Supplementary information

See also: News and Views by McKenna

The last botnet - p744

Vaughan Stanger

doi:10.1038/nphys1067

You've got mail.

Full Text - The last botnet | PDF (176 KB) - The last botnet