Phys.org news

Phys.org / Tuned nanocrystals speed light-driven reactions by matching molecular vibrations

Adjusting the size and chemistry of nanocrystals within an ultrathin surface can speed up light-driven chemical reactions, according to a University of Michigan Engineering study published in the Journal of the American Chemical ...

Feb 17, 2026 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Longer roots for drought? How an edited protein could reshape crop resilience

What's the key to growing resilient crops that can survive tough conditions? Researchers at the University of Missouri are getting to the root of it—literally. Researchers in the Walter Gassmann lab at Mizzou's Bond Life ...

Feb 17, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / To aficionados, fungi are freaky, mystical and overlooked. They're helping scientists learn more

Jessica Allen crunched through fallen leaves among Manzanita trees hunting for something few have spotted before: the Manzanita butter clump—a rare and little-known yellow mushroom found, so far, only along North America's ...

Feb 17, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Can seagrass survive extreme heat? Exploring how different species withstand elevated water temperatures

Extreme heat can have a devastating effect on seagrass, but new research from Edith Cowan University (ECU) could shape how these vitally important marine ecosystems are managed and restored. In separate studies carried out ...

Feb 17, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Widespread 'enhanced rock weathering' could slow global warming

It's one of the latest technologies for sequestering carbon: crush silicate rocks, add to crop soil, and let the rock dust naturally react with carbon dioxide. The reactions bind carbon into stable mineral forms that can ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Earth
Phys.org / Japan's ancient 'tigers' were actually cave lions, DNA evidence shows

There aren't any native lion or tiger populations living in Japan today, but this was not always the case. Fossil evidence indicates that at least one species of large cat roamed the archipelago during the Late Pleistocene—a ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / Silicon quantum processor detects single-qubit errors while preserving entanglement

Quantum computers are alternative computing devices that process information, leveraging quantum mechanical effects, such as entanglement between different particles. Entanglement establishes a link between particles that ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Physics
Phys.org / How one genome creates two distinct fungal bodies

Creatures that can change from one form to another are a staple of science fiction: Think werewolves and Transformers. Nature, too, has its shapeshifters, such as dimorphic fungi. While scientists have known for some time ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Biology
Phys.org / New catalyst unlocks aluminum's ability to switch between oxidation states

Aluminum's journey has been remarkable, going from being more expensive than gold to one of the most widely used materials, from beverage cans to window frames and car parts. Scientists from the Southern University of Science ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Chemistry
Phys.org / Using light to probe fractional charges in a fractional Chern insulator

In some quantum materials, which are materials governed by quantum mechanical effects, interactions between charged particles (i.e., electrons) can prompt the creation of quasiparticles called anyons, which carry only a fraction ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Physics
Phys.org / Long-term radio observations probe a relativistic binary pulsar system

Astronomers have analyzed the data from long-term radio observations of a binary pulsar known as PSR J1906+0746. Results of the new study, published February 5 on the arXiv pre-print server, deliver important information ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Antarctica sits above Earth's strongest 'gravity hole.' Now we know how it got that way

Gravity feels reliable—stable and consistent enough to count on. But reality is far stranger than our intuition. In truth, the strength of gravity varies over Earth's surface. And it is weakest beneath the frozen continent ...

Feb 16, 2026 in Earth