Reviews & Analysis

Some gravitational phenomena are difficult or even impossible to observe in real spacetime. Laboratory analogues of black-hole horizons offer new perspectives on field theory effects that might help our understanding of gravitation.

Quark–gluon plasma has been recreated in heavy-ion collisions, providing a glimpse of the very early Universe. The PHENIX Collaboration offers new insights into the possible creation of this state in smaller collision systems.

The simulation of strongly correlated quantum phases using ultracold atoms in optical lattices was first proposed 20 years ago. In the wake of that pioneering idea, quantum simulations are now widely pursued in experiments across the world.

A large-scale imaging study has tracked thousands of bacteria living in three-dimensional biofilms. This technical tour de force reveals the importance of mechanical interactions between cells for building local and global structure.

This Review surveys recent efforts at understanding and characterizing generation of high harmonics from solid-state materials.

The solutions adopted by the high-energy physics community to foster reproducible research are examples of best practices that could be embraced more widely. This first experience suggests that reproducibility requires going beyond openness.

Electrons with fractional dimension have been observed in an artificial Sierpiński triangle, demonstrating their quantum fractal nature.

Using data from the IceCube telescope, a study presents the first attempt at obtaining geophysical information about Earth’s internal structure from the flux of neutrinos that pass through it.

Despite the growing interdisciplinarity of research, the Nobel prize consolidates the traditional disciplinary categorization of science. There is, in fact, an opportunity for the most revered scientific reward to mirror the current research landscape.

Generating pure spin currents is a necessary part of many spintronic devices. Now there is a new mechanism for doing this, utilizing nuclear spin waves.

Recent developments have seen concepts originally developed in quantum information theory, such as entanglement and quantum error correction, come to play a fundamental role in understanding quantum gravity.

It is the common wisdom that time evolution of a many-body system leads to thermalization and washes away quantum correlations. But one class of system — referred to as many-body localized — defy this expectation.

Quantitative tools for measuring the propagation of information through quantum many-body systems, originally developed to study quantum chaos, have recently found many new applications from black holes to disordered spin systems.

Mercury isotopes are unique in exhibiting dramatic differences in their nuclear shapes. The analysis of over more than twenty Hg isotopes now shows that this follows from the influence of single-particle effects on the collective properties of a nucleus.

Many microorganisms use light-sensitive receptors to migrate. A case in point is the microalga Euglena gracilis, which avoids light intensity increases by swimming in polygonal trajectories — providing an elegant solution to navigational challenges.

An active counterpart to passive wetting is an encouraging sign for tissue physics and, more generally, the interface between biology and physics.

Are there limits to the applicability of textbook quantum theory? Experiments haven’t found any yet, but a new theoretical analysis shows that treating your colleagues as quantum systems might be a step too far.

Large-scale quantum computations are hampered by the propagation of errors. Experiments have now demonstrated the deterministic teleportation of a quantum gate, which prevents error propagation by using a combination of quantum and classical bits.

The axial symmetry of tokamaks benefits plasma confinement but hinders control. Experiments have now proven that optimized non-axisymmetric magnetic fields can provide much improved control without degrading the plasma confinement.

Cooling molecules down to their ground state is an ongoing challenge for atomic and molecular physicists. Further steps in this journey have recently been made, with promising implications.