Table of contents
July 2009, Volume 5 No 7 pp449-526
About the coverEditorials
The truth will out - p449
doi:10.1038/nphys1317
Fraud in science is difficult to spot immediately, but, as high-profile cases show, it does get found out. Tackling plagiarism is at least becoming an easier fight.
Full Text - The truth will out | PDF (94 KB) - The truth will out
The full story - p449
doi:10.1038/nphys1318
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Books and Arts
Cargo-cult science redux - pp451 - 452
Michael R. Norman reviews Plastic Fantastic: How the Biggest Fraud in Physics Shook the Scientific World by Eugenie Samuel Reich
doi:10.1038/nphys1316
Full Text - Cargo-cult science redux | PDF (302 KB) - Cargo-cult science redux
Gravitation for the nation - p452
doi:10.1038/nphys1320
Full Text - Gravitation for the nation | PDF (238 KB) - Gravitation for the nation
Research Highlights
Research highlights - p453
doi:10.1038/nphys1321
Full Text - Research highlights | PDF (142 KB) - Research highlights
News and Views
Cavity QED: Strength in numbers - pp455 - 456
Wolfgang Lange
doi:10.1038/nphys1325
Strong coupling of light and matter is the most important, yet challenging goal in the field of cavity quantum electrodynamics. This regime has now been reached by collectively exciting large crystals of trapped ions.
Full Text - Cavity QEDStrength in numbers | PDF (403 KB) - Cavity QEDStrength in numbers
Subject Categories: Atomic and molecular physics | Optical physics | Quantum physics
See also: Letter by Herskind et al.
Information transmission: Gone up in flames - p456
Andreas Trabesinger
doi:10.1038/nphys1312
Full Text - Information transmissionGone up in flames | PDF (355 KB) - Information transmissionGone up in flames
Subject Categories: Atomic and molecular physics | Chemical physics | Techniques and instrumentation
Plasmonic circuits: Detecting unseen light - pp457 - 458
Luis Martin-Moreno
doi:10.1038/nphys1314
The electrical detection of surface plasmons in nanowires by a micrometre-sized detector brings the possibility of compact photonic circuits closer.
Full Text - Plasmonic circuitsDetecting unseen light | PDF (148 KB) - Plasmonic circuitsDetecting unseen light
Subject Category: Electronics, photonics and device physics
See also: Letter by Falk et al.
Optomechanics: Photons refrigerating phonons - pp458 - 460
Andrew Cleland
doi:10.1038/nphys1324
Optomechanics is a promising route towards the observation of quantum effects in relatively large structures. Three papers, each discussing a different implementation, now combine optical sideband and cryogenic cooling to refrigerate mechanical resonators to fewer than 60 phonons.
Full Text - OptomechanicsPhotons refrigerating phonons | PDF (148 KB) - OptomechanicsPhotons refrigerating phonons
Subject Category: Electronics, photonics and device physics
See also: Letter by Gröblacher et al. | Letter by Park & Wang | Article by Schliesser et al.
Quantum phases of matter: Room for one more - pp460 - 461
T. Senthil
doi:10.1038/nphys1323
In YbRh2Si2, the transitions to a heavy Fermi-liquid state and to a magnetic phase occur at a single quantum critical point. But under chemical pressure, these transitions separate, and a new phase of matter appears in between.
Full Text - Quantum phases of matterRoom for one more | PDF (119 KB) - Quantum phases of matterRoom for one more
Subject Category: Condensed-matter physics
See also: Letter by Friedemann et al.
Femtomagnetism: Magnetism in step with light - pp461 - 463
Uwe Bovensiepen
doi:10.1038/nphys1322
Femtosecond laser pulses can demagnetize ferromagnetic metallic thin films on an ultrafast timescale. Studying how magnetic films react during optical excitation provides a better understanding of this so-called femtomagnetism.
Full Text - FemtomagnetismMagnetism in step with light | PDF (300 KB) - FemtomagnetismMagnetism in step with light
Subject Category: Condensed-matter physics
See also: Article by Bigot et al. | Letter by Zhang et al.
Galactic archaeology: Overcoming great barriers - pp463 - 464
Timothy C. Beers & Daniela Carollo
doi:10.1038/nphys1327
Massive spectroscopic and imaging surveys of individual stars in the Milky Way are opening windows on the formation of the first elements and the nature of the assembly of the Galaxy.
Full Text - Galactic archaeologyOvercoming great barriers | PDF (516 KB) - Galactic archaeologyOvercoming great barriers
Subject Category: Astrophysics
Letters
Detaching the antiferromagnetic quantum critical point from the Fermi-surface reconstruction in YbRh2Si2 - pp465 - 469
S. Friedemann, T. Westerkamp, M. Brando, N. Oeschler, S. Wirth, P. Gegenwart, C. Krellner, C. Geibel & F. Steglich
doi:10.1038/nphys1299
Under chemical pressure, two phase transitions that were seemingly linked become detached in YbRh2Si2, thereby clarifying a long-standing mystery in the heavy-electron metals. Moreover, a new quantum phase appears under negative pressure.
First Paragraph - Detaching the antiferromagnetic quantum critical point from the Fermi-surface reconstruction in YbRh: 2: Si: 2 | Full Text - Detaching the antiferromagnetic quantum critical point from the Fermi-surface reconstruction in YbRh2Si2 | PDF (690 KB) - Detaching the antiferromagnetic quantum critical point from the Fermi-surface reconstruction in YbRh2Si2 | Supplementary information
Subject Categories: Condensed-matter physics | Materials physics
See also: News and Views by Senthil
Wave–particle duality of single surface plasmon polaritons - pp470 - 474
Roman Kolesov, Bernhard Grotz, Gopalakrishnan Balasubramanian, Rainer J. Stöhr, Aurélien A. L. Nicolet, Philip R. Hemmer, Fedor Jelezko & Jörg Wrachtrup
doi:10.1038/nphys1278
An experiment demonstrates that single surface plasmons—collective electronic excitations on metal surfaces—show wave–particle duality. The result suggests that a macroscopic number of electrons can behave like a single quantum particle.
First Paragraph - Wave-particle duality of single surface plasmon polaritons | Full Text - Wave–particle duality of single surface plasmon polaritons | PDF (877 KB) - Wave–particle duality of single surface plasmon polaritons | Supplementary information
Subject Categories: Quantum physics | Optical physics | Electronics, photonics and device physics
Near-field electrical detection of optical plasmons and single-plasmon sources - pp475 - 479
Abram L. Falk, Frank H. L. Koppens, Chun L. Yu, Kibum Kang, Nathalie de Leon Snapp, Alexey V. Akimov, Moon-Ho Jo, Mikhail D. Lukin & Hongkun Park
doi:10.1038/nphys1284
Plasmonics is heralded as the perfect symbiosis of optics, which is quick, and electronics, which works on a small scale. A method for electrically detecting plasmon polaritons using a quantum dot removes the need for far-field optical techniques and could enable nanoscale integrated circuits.
First Paragraph - Near-field electrical detection of optical plasmons and single-plasmon sources | Full Text - Near-field electrical detection of optical plasmons and single-plasmon sources | PDF (728 KB) - Near-field electrical detection of optical plasmons and single-plasmon sources | Supplementary information
Subject Category: Electronics, photonics and device physics
See also: News and Views by Martin-Moreno
Photon burst detection of single atoms in an optical cavity - pp480 - 484
M. L. Terraciano, R. Olson Knell, D. G. Norris, J. Jing, A. Fernández & L. A. Orozco
doi:10.1038/nphys1282
An approach that combines fluorescence and cavity-QED methods enables the fast and reliable detection of single atoms, and should be useful for a series of atomic-physics and quantum-information protocols.
First Paragraph - Photon burst detection of single atoms in an optical cavity | Full Text - Photon burst detection of single atoms in an optical cavity | PDF (622 KB) - Photon burst detection of single atoms in an optical cavity
Subject Categories: Atomic and molecular physics | Optical physics | Techniques and instrumentation
Demonstration of an ultracold micro-optomechanical oscillator in a cryogenic cavity - pp485 - 488
Simon Gröblacher, Jared B. Hertzberg, Michael R. Vanner, Garrett D. Cole, Sylvain Gigan, K. C. Schwab & Markus Aspelmeyer
doi:10.1038/nphys1301
Cooling optomechanical resonators to their quantum-mechanical ground state could enable the observation of quantum effects in macroscopic objects. The experimental cooling of a 43-ng silicon-nitride beam to a thermal occupancy of just 30 indicates that this ultimate goal is not too far away.
First Paragraph - Demonstration of an ultracold micro-optomechanical oscillator in a cryogenic cavity | Full Text - Demonstration of an ultracold micro-optomechanical oscillator in a cryogenic cavity | PDF (1,034 KB) - Demonstration of an ultracold micro-optomechanical oscillator in a cryogenic cavity | Supplementary information
Subject Category: Electronics, photonics and device physics
See also: News and Views by Cleland
Resolved-sideband and cryogenic cooling of an optomechanical resonator - pp489 - 493
Young-Shin Park & Hailin Wang
doi:10.1038/nphys1303
Combing cryogenic and so-called sideband cooling promises to cool micrometre-scaled resonators to the point at which quantum effects take hold. Hope that this aim will soon be reached is boosted by the demonstration of a deformed silica microsphere that is cooled so that it contains only 37 phonons.
First Paragraph - Resolved-sideband and cryogenic cooling of an optomechanical resonator | Full Text - Resolved-sideband and cryogenic cooling of an optomechanical resonator | PDF (603 KB) - Resolved-sideband and cryogenic cooling of an optomechanical resonator | Supplementary information
Subject Category: Electronics, photonics and device physics
See also: News and Views by Cleland
Realization of collective strong coupling with ion Coulomb crystals in an optical cavity - pp494 - 498
Peter F. Herskind, Aurélien Dantan, Joan P. Marler, Magnus Albert & Michael Drewsen
doi:10.1038/nphys1302
The experimental realization of strong coupling between a Coulomb crystal—made of several hundred ions—and the light field in an optical cavity could provide a route to efficient light–matter interfaces.
First Paragraph - Realization of collective strong coupling with ion Coulomb crystals in an optical cavity | Full Text - Realization of collective strong coupling with ion Coulomb crystals in an optical cavity | PDF (1,212 KB) - Realization of collective strong coupling with ion Coulomb crystals in an optical cavity
Subject Categories: Atomic and molecular physics | Optical physics | Quantum physics
See also: News and Views by Lange
Paradigm of the time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect for femtosecond magnetism - pp499 - 502
G. P. Zhang, W. Hübner, Georgios Lefkidis, Yihua Bai & Thomas F. George
doi:10.1038/nphys1315
Conventional understanding of the magneto-optical Kerr effect, in which changes in the magnetization of a material cause changes in the polarization of reflected light, assumes that this incident light is continuous. However, first-principles simulations of nickel show that this assumption breaks down for femtosecond pulses of light, and establishes a firm foundation for understanding the dynamics of femtomagnetism.
First Paragraph - Paradigm of the time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect for femtosecond magnetism | Full Text - Paradigm of the time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect for femtosecond magnetism | PDF (543 KB) - Paradigm of the time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect for femtosecond magnetism | Supplementary information
Subject Categories: Condensed-matter physics | Electronics, photonics and device physics | Optical physics
See also: News and Views by Bovensiepen
Articles
Individual topological tunnelling events of a quantum field probed through their macroscopic consequences - pp503 - 508
Mitrabhanu Sahu, Myung-Ho Bae, Andrey Rogachev, David Pekker, Tzu-Chieh Wei, Nayana Shah, Paul M. Goldbart & Alexey Bezryadin
doi:10.1038/nphys1276
Measurements of the distribution of stochastic switching currents in homogeneous, ultra-narrow superconducting nanowires provide strong evidence that the low-temperature current-switching in such systems occurs through quantum phase slips—topological quantum fluctuations of the superconducting order parameter via which tunnelling occurs between current-carrying states.
Abstract - Individual topological tunnelling events of a quantum field probed through their macroscopic consequences | Full Text - Individual topological tunnelling events of a quantum field probed through their macroscopic consequences | PDF (1,597 KB) - Individual topological tunnelling events of a quantum field probed through their macroscopic consequences | Supplementary information
Subject Categories: Condensed-matter physics | Nanotechnology | Materials physics
Resolved-sideband cooling and position measurement of a micromechanical oscillator close to the Heisenberg uncertainty limit - pp509 - 514
A. Schliesser, O. Arcizet, R. Rivière, G. Anetsberger & T. J. Kippenberg
doi:10.1038/nphys1304
Optomechanical systems in which a high-quality optical resonator is coupled to a mechanical oscillator hold great promise for examining quantum effects in relatively large structures. As a step towards this, a silica microtoroid has now been cooled to the point that it has just 63 thermal quanta.
Abstract - Resolved-sideband cooling and position measurement of a micromechanical oscillator close to the Heisenberg uncertainty limit | Full Text - Resolved-sideband cooling and position measurement of a micromechanical oscillator close to the Heisenberg uncertainty limit | PDF (929 KB) - Resolved-sideband cooling and position measurement of a micromechanical oscillator close to the Heisenberg uncertainty limit
Subject Category: Electronics, photonics and device physics
See also: News and Views by Cleland
Coherent ultrafast magnetism induced by femtosecond laser pulses - pp515 - 520
Jean-Yves Bigot, Mircea Vomir & Eric Beaurepaire
doi:10.1038/nphys1285
Femtosecond laser pulses can demagnetize ferromagnetic metallic thin films on an ultrafast timescale. Studying how a single optical pulse interacts with a magnetic film now provides a better understanding of this so-called femtomagnetism.
Abstract - Coherent ultrafast magnetism induced by femtosecond laser pulses | Full Text - Coherent ultrafast magnetism induced by femtosecond laser pulses | PDF (1,228 KB) - Coherent ultrafast magnetism induced by femtosecond laser pulses
Subject Categories: Optical physics | Materials physics
See also: News and Views by Bovensiepen
Experimental onset threshold and magnetic pressure pile-up for 3D reconnection - pp521 - 526
T. P. Intrator, X. Sun, G. Lapenta, L. Dorf & I. Furno
doi:10.1038/nphys1300
Magnetic reconnection—the process by which magnetic field-lines break and reform in a plasma—is believed to be an important part of many astrophysical phenomena, but is poorly understood. The recreation of 3D reconnection events in a laboratory plasma provides a powerful means of studying the parameters that govern the onset, evolution and decay of this process.
Abstract - Experimental onset threshold and magnetic pressure pile-up for 3D reconnection | Full Text - Experimental onset threshold and magnetic pressure pile-up for 3D reconnection | PDF (1,088 KB) - Experimental onset threshold and magnetic pressure pile-up for 3D reconnection
Subject Categories: Plasma physics | Astrophysics
