Featured
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Research Briefing |
A layered metal confines heavy electrons to two dimensions
In heavy-fermion compounds, hybridization between mobile charge carriers and localized magnetic moments gives rise to exotic quantum phenomena. The discovery of heavy fermions in a van der Waals metal that can be peeled apart to a layer a few atoms thick allows these phenomena to be studied and manipulated in two dimensions.
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News |
Could giant underwater curtains slow ice-sheet melting?
The curtains would separate polar ice sheets from warm ocean waters — but like other geoengineering proposals, the idea divides scientists.
- Xiaoying You
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Article
| Open AccessObservation of interband Berry phase in laser-driven crystals
The Berry phase is resolved in light-driven crystals, via attosecond interferometry, in which the electronic wavefunction accumulates a geometric phase as it interacts with the laser field, mapping its coherence into the emission of high-order harmonics.
- Ayelet J. Uzan-Narovlansky
- , Lior Faeyrman
- & Nirit Dudovich
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Article |
Tuning commensurability in twisted van der Waals bilayers
Using valley-resolved scanning tunnelling spectroscopy, twisted WSe2 bilayers are studied, including incommensurate dodecagon quasicrystals at 30° and commensurate moiré crystals at 21.8° and 38.2°.
- Yanxing Li
- , Fan Zhang
- & Chih-Kang Shih
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Article
| Open AccessPattern recognition in the nucleation kinetics of non-equilibrium self-assembly
Examination of nucleation during self-assembly of multicomponent structures illustrates how ubiquitous molecular phenomena inherently classify high-dimensional patterns of concentrations in a manner similar to neural network computation.
- Constantine Glen Evans
- , Jackson O’Brien
- & Arvind Murugan
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Article |
Two-dimensional heavy fermions in the van der Waals metal CeSiI
We present comprehensive thermodynamic and spectroscopic evidence for an antiferromagnetically ordered heavy-fermion ground state in the van der Waals metal CeSiI.
- Victoria A. Posey
- , Simon Turkel
- & Xavier Roy
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Research Highlight |
A quantum fix makes e-commerce more tamper-resistant
Light pulses with specific quantum properties could be harnessed to send digital ‘contracts’ between buyer and seller.
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Essay |
How a forgotten physicist’s discovery broke the symmetry of the Universe
When Rosemary Brown identified a strange particle decay 75 years ago, it set events in motion that would rewrite the laws of physics.
- Suzie Sheehy
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Research Highlight |
The Higgs boson is caught in a singular transformation
Detectors at the Large Hadron Collider spot the famed particle decaying into a photon and a ‘Z boson’.
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Research Briefing |
Spin supersolid with giant magnetocaloric effect promises a new route to extreme cooling
Supersolids are long-sought-after quantum materials with two seemingly contradictory features: a rigid solid structure and superfluidity. A triangular-lattice cobaltate material provides evidence for a quantum spin analogue of supersolidity, with an additional giant magnetocaloric effect — discoveries that pave the way for helium-free cooling to temperatures below 1 kelvin with frustrated quantum magnets.
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Article |
Giant magnetocaloric effect in spin supersolid candidate Na2BaCo(PO4)2
Evidence for a quantum magnetic analogue of a supersolid appears in a recently synthesized antiferromagnet showing a strong magnetocaloric effect of the spin supersolid phase with potential for applications in sub-kelvin refrigeration.
- Junsen Xiang
- , Chuandi Zhang
- & Gang Su
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Article
| Open AccessEncoding a magic state with beyond break-even fidelity
A scheme to prepare a magic state, an important ingredient for quantum computers, on a superconducting qubit array using error correction is proposed that produces better magic states than those that can be prepared using the individual qubits of the device.
- Riddhi S. Gupta
- , Neereja Sundaresan
- & Benjamin J. Brown
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Article
| Open AccessOperando probing of the surface chemistry during the Haber–Bosch process
Using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, the surface composition of iron and ruthenium catalysts during ammonia synthesis at pressures up to 1 bar and temperatures as high as 723 K can be revealed.
- Christopher M. Goodwin
- , Patrick Lömker
- & Anders Nilsson
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News & Views |
Tailoring graphene for electronics beyond silicon
The integration of non-silicon semiconductors into systems on chips is needed for advanced power and sensing technologies. A semiconducting graphene ‘buffer’ layer grown on silicon carbide is a step on this path.
- Francesca Iacopi
- & Andrea C. Ferrari
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Article |
Heat conductance of the quantum Hall bulk
We measure efficient heat conductance through the electrically insulating quantum Hall bulk and propose a theoretical model based on the role played by the localized states.
- Ron Aharon Melcer
- , Avigail Gil
- & Erez Berg
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News Feature |
The AI–quantum computing mash-up: will it revolutionize science?
Scientists are exploring the potential of quantum machine learning. But whether there are useful applications for the fusion of artificial intelligence and quantum computing is unclear.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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Nature Video |
Super-propulsion: how sharpshooting insects flick their pee
High-speed cameras reveal tiny insects employing a physical phenomenon, never-before seen in a natural system to avoid drowning in their own urine
- Noah Baker
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News & Views |
Neutrino secrets could be revealed by Earth’s atmosphere
Scientists typically look at the skies or take to the laboratory to probe the neutrino’s properties. But neutrinos produced in Earth’s atmosphere could reveal this long-sought information — and the experiments are already well under way.
- Josh Spitz
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News & Views Forum |
2D materials ratchet up biorealism in computing
A transistor made from atomically thin materials mimics the way in which connections between neurons are strengthened by activity. Two perspectives reveal why physicists and neuroscientists share equal enthusiasm for this feat of engineering.
- Frank H. L. Koppens
- , James B. Aimone
- & Frances S. Chance
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Article |
Stable blue phosphorescent organic LEDs that use polariton-enhanced Purcell effects
Polariton-enhanced Purcell effects can be used to reduce the triplet density in blue phosphorescent organic light-emitting diodes, thereby extending their operational lifetimes by decreasing the annihilation of high-energy, long-lived blue triplets.
- Haonan Zhao
- , Claire E. Arneson
- & Stephen R. Forrest
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Book Review |
Black holes, love and poetry — an artistic exploration of intimacy and adventure
A book by physicist Kip Thorne and artist Lia Halloran explores the mysteries of space through poetry and paintings.
- Ron Cowen
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Essay |
Does quantum theory imply the entire Universe is preordained?
The popular idea that quantum physics implies everything is random and nothing is certain might be as far from the truth as it could possibly be.
- Eddy Keming Chen
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News & Views |
Plastic pollution, viral evolution and drowned coasts: wrapping up a year of remarkable science
Highlights from News & Views published in late 2023.
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News & Views |
Wetlands, neutrinos and warning coloration: kicking off a year of remarkable science
Highlights from News & Views published in early 2023.
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News |
US nuclear-fusion lab enters new era: achieving ‘ignition’ over and over
Researchers at the National Ignition Facility are consistently creating reactions that make more energy than they consume.
- Jeff Tollefson
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News & Views |
The laser trick that could put an ultraprecise optical clock on a chip
Researchers have made a key breakthrough in how light is used to control time signals from the world’s most precise clocks. The technique marks a crucial step in bringing this technology into everyday life.
- Mengxi Tan
- & David J. Moss
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News & Views |
Twisted system makes nanolasers shine together
Ultrathin semiconductor materials that mimic twisted layers of atoms have been used to build synchronized arrays of nanometre-scale lasers. The systems can be configured — and easily reconfigured — to form intricate patterns.
- Liqin Tang
- & Zhigang Chen
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News Feature |
Nuclear-fusion breakthrough: this physicist helped to achieve the first-ever energy gain
Annie Kritcher and her team at the US National Ignition Facility designed fusion experiments that generated more energy than they consumed.
- Jeff Tollefson
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News Feature |
Research in Chornobyl zone restarts amid ravages of war
The area surrounding the nuclear reactor was a science hotspot — until it was on the front line of the Ukraine war.
- Matthew Ponsford
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Article |
Quantum spin nematic phase in a square-lattice iridate
We establish a spin nematic phase in the square-lattice iridate Sr2IrO4 and find a complete breakdown of coherent magnon excitations at short-wavelength scales, suggesting a many-body quantum entanglement in the antiferromagnetic state.
- Hoon Kim
- , Jin-Kwang Kim
- & B. J. Kim
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Research Highlight |
Weird waves in water emulate those in quantum matter
Unusually large wave patterns made by vibrating a container of water resemble those seen in Bose–Einstein condensates.
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Research Highlight |
Why coffee particles clump and make a mess during grinding
Scientists studying the electrical charge on coffee particles stumble on a secret to a better cup of joe.
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News |
Quantum-computing approach uses single molecules as qubits for first time
Platforms based on molecules manipulated using ‘optical tweezers’ might be able to perform complex physics calculations.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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News |
Big Bang observatory tops wish list for big US physics projects
Report also supports projects of unprecedented scale to study dark matter, neutrinos and the Higgs boson.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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Research Briefing |
Probing single electron spins with an atomic force microscope for quantum applications
Electron spin resonance is a standard method for studying the structure of chemical compounds, and it can also be used to control quantum spin states. Combining electron spin resonance with atomic force microscopy allows single spins to be manipulated in single molecules — with potential applications in quantum computing and elsewhere.
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Article
| Open AccessLogical quantum processor based on reconfigurable atom arrays
A programmable quantum processor based on encoded logical qubits operating with up to 280 physical qubits is described, in which improvement of algorithmic performance using a variety of error-correction codes is enabled.
- Dolev Bluvstein
- , Simon J. Evered
- & Mikhail D. Lukin
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Nature Podcast |
The world’s smallest light-trapping silicon cavity
Researchers exploit intermolecular forces to carve a nanoscale hole, and investigating whether poverty can be reduced without increasing emissions.
- Nick Petrić Howe
- & Shamini Bundell
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Article
| Open AccessSingle-molecule electron spin resonance by means of atomic force microscopy
By using a pump–probe atomic force microscopy detection scheme, electron spin transitions between non-equilibrium triplet states of individual pentacene molecules, as well as the ability to manipulate electron spins over tens of microseconds, is demonstrated.
- Lisanne Sellies
- , Raffael Spachtholz
- & Jascha Repp
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Article
| Open AccessSelf-assembled photonic cavities with atomic-scale confinement
Silicon photonic nanocavities based on surface forces and conventional lithography and etching are developed, demonstrating pioneering technology that integrates atomic dimensions with the scalability of planar semiconductors.
- Ali Nawaz Babar
- , Thor August Schimmell Weis
- & Søren Stobbe
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News |
IBM releases first-ever 1,000-qubit quantum chip
The company announces its latest huge chip — but will now focus on developing smaller chips with a fresh approach to ‘error correction’.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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News |
Gravitational waves from giant black-hole collision reveal long-sought ‘ringing’
Researchers find massive merger’s signature aftershocks hidden in 2019 data from LIGO and Virgo detectors.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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Research Highlight |
The hunt for dark-matter particles ventures into the wild
Sensors deployed at magnetically quiet rural sites looked for axions and ‘hidden photons’ — with no luck yet.
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Nature Video |
Super hot plasma made easy with stabilising fibres
Carbon fibre blocks could make it easier to create uniform high temperature plasma for manufacturing and research.
- Shamini Bundell
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Article |
Evidence for chiral supercurrent in quantum Hall Josephson junctions
Ultra-narrow quantum Hall Josephson junctions defined in encapsulated graphene nanoribbons exhibit a chiral supercurrent, visible up to 8 T.
- Hadrien Vignaud
- , David Perconte
- & Benjamin Sacépé
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Nature Podcast |
Why COP28 probably won’t keep the 1.5 degree dream alive
We discuss the challenges of the upcoming climate-change conference, and a way to make stable plasma using hairy blocks.
- Nick Petrić Howe
- & Shamini Bundell
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Article |
Exploring large-scale entanglement in quantum simulation
On a 51-ion quantum simulator, we investigate locality of entanglement Hamiltonians for a Heisenberg chain, demonstrating Bisognano–Wichmann predictions of quantum field theory applied to lattice many-body systems, and observe the transition from area- to volume-law scaling of entanglement entropies.
- Manoj K. Joshi
- , Christian Kokail
- & Peter Zoller
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News |
The most powerful cosmic ray since the Oh-My-God particle puzzles scientists
Scientists spot a particle of intense energy, but explaining where it came from might require some new physics.
- Gemma Conroy
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News & Views |
Magnetic hopfion rings in new era for topology
A curious topological structure known as a hopfion ring has been induced in a magnetic material. The first of its kind in 3D, the ring is a tantalizing prospect for several branches of computing development.
- Hanu Arava
- & Charudatta M. Phatak
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