Across the great divide - p309

doi:10.1038/nphys1258

It is fifty years since science and the humanities were identified as "two cultures" between which communication had all but ceased.

Full Text - Across the great divide | PDF (92 KB) - Across the great divide

Never the twain - p310

Mark Buchanan

doi:10.1038/nphys1260

Full Text - Never the twain | PDF (102 KB) - Never the twain

Polarizing effect - pp311 - 312

Philip Ball reviews The Shadow of Enlightenment: Optical and Political Transparency in France, 1789–1848 by Theresa Levitt

doi:10.1038/nphys1261

Full Text - Polarizing effect | PDF (217 KB) - Polarizing effect

Stars of the show - p312

May Chiao reviews Hawaiian Starlight by Jean-Charles Cuillandre

doi:10.1038/nphys1262

Full Text - Stars of the show | PDF (158 KB) - Stars of the show

Research highlights - p313

doi:10.1038/nphys1263

Full Text - Research highlights | PDF (116 KB) - Research highlights

Fluid dynamics: The subtle art of blowing bubbles - pp315 - 316

Thomas P. Witelski

doi:10.1038/nphys1265

Careful study of the moments leading up to pinch-off of air bubbles in water reveals rich and intricate dynamics controlling their evolution, and could spark re-examination of assumptions about the nature of the formation of singularities in many physical systems.

Full Text - Fluid dynamicsThe subtle art of blowing bubbles | PDF (167 KB) - Fluid dynamicsThe subtle art of blowing bubbles

Subject Category: Fluid dynamics

See also: Letter by Schmidt et al.

Imaging: Singularly fast - p316

Ed Gerstner

doi:10.1038/nphys1257

Full Text - ImagingSingularly fast | PDF (137 KB) - ImagingSingularly fast

Subject Categories: Electronics, photonics and device physics | Optical physics | Techniques and instrumentation

Nanotubes: Carbon surprises again - pp317 - 318

Björn Trauzettel & Daniel Loss

doi:10.1038/nphys1266

Experiments in ¹³C nanotubes reveal surprisingly strong nuclear spin effects that, if properly harnessed, could provide a mechanism for manipulation and storage of quantum information.

Full Text - NanotubesCarbon surprises again | PDF (278 KB) - NanotubesCarbon surprises again

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

See also: Letter by Churchill et al.

Nearby galaxies: Have map will travel - p318

May Chiao

doi:10.1038/nphys1256

Full Text - Nearby galaxiesHave map will travel | PDF (153 KB) - Nearby galaxiesHave map will travel

Subject Category: Astrophysics

Strong-field physics: Ionization surprise - pp319 - 320

Farhad H. M. Faisal

doi:10.1038/nphys1264

The common picture of how atoms and molecules are ionized in intense laser fields has had decades of success. However, the observation of an unexpected but apparently universal low-energy photoionization feature suggests this picture is incomplete.

Full Text - Strong-field physicsIonization surprise | PDF (130 KB) - Strong-field physicsIonization surprise

Subject Categories: Atomic and molecular physics | Optical physics

See also: Letter by Blaga et al.

Electron–nuclear interaction in ¹³C nanotube double quantum dots - pp321 - 326

H. O. H. Churchill, A. J. Bestwick, J. W. Harlow, F. Kuemmeth, D. Marcos, C. H. Stwertka, S. K. Watson & C. M. Marcus

doi:10.1038/nphys1247

Hyperfine coupling to nuclei can be detrimental to the coherence of electron spins, but properly harnessed it can provide a mechanism for manipulation and storage of quantum information. Spin-blockade measurements in ¹³C carbon nanotubes now show surprisingly strong effects of electron–nuclear interaction, with a hyperfine coupling two orders of magnitude larger than previously anticipated.

First Paragraph - Electron-nuclear interaction in : 13: C nanotube double quantum dots | Full Text - Electron–nuclear interaction in 13C nanotube double quantum dots | PDF (1,483 KB) - Electron–nuclear interaction in 13C nanotube double quantum dots | Supplementary information

Subject Categories: Nanotechnology | Condensed-matter physics

See also: News and Views by Trauzettel & Loss

Franck–Condon blockade in suspended carbon nanotube quantum dots - pp327 - 331

Renaud Leturcq, Christoph Stampfer, Kevin Inderbitzin, Lukas Durrer, Christofer Hierold, Eros Mariani, Maximilian G. Schultz, Felix von Oppen & Klaus Ensslin

doi:10.1038/nphys1234

The remarkably strong coupling between the electronic and vibrational modes of suspended carbon nanotube quantum dots provides a new way of studying quantized mechanical motion.

First Paragraph - Franck-Condon blockade in suspended carbon nanotube quantum dots | Full Text - Franck–Condon blockade in suspended carbon nanotube quantum dots | PDF (1,642 KB) - Franck–Condon blockade in suspended carbon nanotube quantum dots | Supplementary information

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

X-ray imaging of the dynamic magnetic vortex core deformation - pp332 - 334

A. Vansteenkiste, K. W. Chou, M. Weigand, M. Curcic, V. Sackmann, H. Stoll, T. Tyliszczak, G. Woltersdorf, C. H. Back, G. Schütz & B. Van Waeyenberge

doi:10.1038/nphys1231

The creation and annihilation of magnetic vortex–antivortex pairs has been predicted to have a role in magnetic switching in permalloy nanostructures, but has never previously been observed. High-speed X-ray microscopy now enables the evolution and dynamics of this process to be studied in detail.

First Paragraph - X-ray imaging of the dynamic magnetic vortex core deformation | Full Text - X-ray imaging of the dynamic magnetic vortex core deformation | PDF (593 KB) - X-ray imaging of the dynamic magnetic vortex core deformation

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

Strong-field photoionization revisited - pp335 - 338

C. I. Blaga, F. Catoire, P. Colosimo, G. G. Paulus, H. G. Muller, P. Agostini & L. F. DiMauro

doi:10.1038/nphys1228

The discovery of an overlooked but apparently ubiquitous spike in the mid-infrared photoelectron spectra of molecular and atomic gases suggests that we don't know as much as we thought we did about the ionization of matter in strong fields.

First Paragraph - Strong-field photoionization revisited | Full Text - Strong-field photoionization revisited | PDF (719 KB) - Strong-field photoionization revisited

Subject Categories: Atomic and molecular physics | Optical physics

See also: News and Views by Faisal

Control of a magnetic Feshbach resonance with laser light - pp339 - 342

Dominik M. Bauer, Matthias Lettner, Christoph Vo, Gerhard Rempe & Stephan Dürr

doi:10.1038/nphys1232

The strength of interparticle interactions in cold gases can be tuned using magnetic fields. This widely used approach is now combined with laser manipulation, providing additional flexibility, such as the possibility of spatially modulating the interaction strength on short length scales.

First Paragraph - Control of a magnetic Feshbach resonance with laser light | Full Text - Control of a magnetic Feshbach resonance with laser light | PDF (583 KB) - Control of a magnetic Feshbach resonance with laser light

Subject Categories: Atomic and molecular physics | Optical physics

Memory-encoding vibrations in a disconnecting air bubble - pp343 - 346

Laura E. Schmidt, Nathan C. Keim, Wendy W. Zhang & Sidney R. Nagel

doi:10.1038/nphys1233

Conventional wisdom suggests that it should be impossible for information to pass across a singularity. A study of the behaviour of air bubbles as they disconnect from a submerged nozzle suggests that this isn't always the case.

First Paragraph - Memory-encoding vibrations in a disconnecting air bubble | Full Text - Memory-encoding vibrations in a disconnecting air bubble | PDF (693 KB) - Memory-encoding vibrations in a disconnecting air bubble

Subject Category: Fluid dynamics

See also: News and Views by Witelski

Origin of the electrophoretic force on DNA in solid-state nanopores - pp347 - 351

Stijn van Dorp, Ulrich F. Keyser, Nynke H. Dekker, Cees Dekker & Serge G. Lemay

doi:10.1038/nphys1230

When a single strand of DNA is threaded through a nanopore, a direct test of the effect of pore size indicates that a hydrodynamic model for the process should include the coupled Poisson–Boltzmann and Stokes equations.

First Paragraph - Origin of the electrophoretic force on DNA in solid-state nanopores | Full Text - Origin of the electrophoretic force on DNA in solid-state nanopores | PDF (838 KB) - Origin of the electrophoretic force on DNA in solid-state nanopores | Supplementary information

Subject Category: Biological physics

Femtosecond few-fermion dynamics and deterministic single-photon gain in a quantum dot - pp352 - 356

Florian Sotier, Tim Thomay, Tobias Hanke, Jan Korger, Suddhasatta Mahapatra, Alexander Frey, Karl Brunner, Rudolf Bratschitsch & Alfred Leitenstorfer

doi:10.1038/nphys1229

The ability to coherently manipulate single electrons and photons is vital for quantum information processing. Experiments now demonstrate optical initialization, manipulation and probing of a single quantum dot on femtosecond timescales, revealing signatures of interaction effects, optical gain and the ability to change the number of quanta in a light pulse by one.

Abstract - Femtosecond few-fermion dynamics and deterministic single-photon gain in a quantum dot | Full Text - Femtosecond few-fermion dynamics and deterministic single-photon gain in a quantum dot | PDF (1,027 KB) - Femtosecond few-fermion dynamics and deterministic single-photon gain in a quantum dot

Subject Categories: Nanotechnology | Electronics, photonics and device physics

Single-shot carrier–envelope phase measurement of few-cycle laser pulses - pp357 - 362

T. Wittmann, B. Horvath, W. Helml, M. G. Schätzel, X. Gu, A. L. Cavalieri, G. G. Paulus & R. Kienberger

doi:10.1038/nphys1250

When the length of a light pulse approaches that of just a few wavelengths, the difference in the phase of its field relative to its overall shape, or envelope becomes important in how the pulse interacts with matter. Accurate measurements of this carrier-envelope phase previously required averaging over many separate pulses. Now it can be measured in one shot.

Abstract - Single-shot carrier-envelope phase measurement of few-cycle laser pulses | Full Text - Single-shot carrier–envelope phase measurement of few-cycle laser pulses | PDF (2,573 KB) - Single-shot carrier–envelope phase measurement of few-cycle laser pulses | Supplementary information

Subject Categories: Optical physics | Techniques and instrumentation

Proton-driven plasma-wakefield acceleration - pp363 - 367

Allen Caldwell, Konstantin Lotov, Alexander Pukhov & Frank Simon

doi:10.1038/nphys1248

The extreme fields generated when a high-intensity laser or relativistic electron passes through a plasma offer the potential to accelerate particles over shorter distances than is possible with conventional accelerators. A new study suggests that driving a plasma with protons rather than electrons could be the key to generating TeV electron beams by this process.

Abstract - Proton-driven plasma-wakefield acceleration | Full Text - Proton-driven plasma-wakefield acceleration | PDF (984 KB) - Proton-driven plasma-wakefield acceleration

Subject Category: Plasma physics