Volume 4 Issue 10, October 2008

Superconducting quantum interference devices, or SQUIDs, are usually used as high-sensitivity magnetic-field detectors. Embedding bar resonators into them could enable this sensitivity to be exploited for displacement measurements at the quantum limit.

As with most things in life, some disorder can cause unexpected new phenomena. But when it comes to disorder-induced Anderson localization of light in a photonic crystal, simulations suggest that moderation may be the best policy.

The observation of controlled adiabatic evolution from paramagnetic into ferromagnetic order in a system made of two trapped ions represents an initial step into the emerging field of quantum simulation.

Why are the superconducting pairs in high-temperature superconductors so resilient to the presence of disorder? The strong electronic correlations appear to be the answer.

Disorder and geometric frustration usually lead to magnetic spins that point in random directions, as in a spin glass. So how can spin-glass behaviour emerge in a well-ordered system without static frustration? The presence of ‘dynamic frustration’ may explain the situation.

That the dynamical properties of a glass-forming liquid at high temperature are different from behaviour in the supercooled state has already been established. Numerical simulations now suggest that the static length scale over which spatial correlations exist also changes on approaching the glass transition.

The integration of a micrometre-sized magnet with a semiconductor device has enabled the individual manipulation of two single electron spins. This approach may provide a scalable route for quantum computing with electron spins confined in quantum dots.

A technique that controls electron spins using single optical pulses far detuned from the optical transition has been demonstrated. This approach may enable fast spin manipulation in a variety of solid-state systems.

Superconducting quantum interference devices, or SQUIDs as they are better known, are capable of detecting minute variations in magnetic field. Embedding a suspended beam into the structure of d.c. SQUID enables this sensitivity to be exploited for measuring displacements.

Cells can change shape by reorganizing the actin filaments that make up the cytoskeleton, and this is usually achieved through protein interactions. But it seems that the cell membrane, by virtue of its elasticity, can also influence the bundling of actin filaments.

State-of-the-art simulations of disorder-induced trapping of light in inverted opals provides a basis for a definitive identification, and potential use, of the three-dimensional Anderson localization of light.

Analysis of how condensation of an ensemble of bilayer excitons reorganizes the low-energy degrees of freedom of its constituent fermions suggests it should be possible to generate a dissipationless superflow in such a system.

Improvements in the microwave output efficiency of MgO-based magnetic tunnel junctions brings them a step closer to practical applications and enables greater insight into the physics of spin transfer in such devices.

Impurity centres in diamond have recently attracted attention in the context of quantum information processing. Now their use as magnetic-field sensors is explored, promising a fresh approach to single-spin detection and magnetic-field imaging at the nanoscale.

The perils of research.