Phys.org news
Phys.org / Supersized quantum sensors make faint photons easier to catch
Our everyday life is flooded with photons, the quantum building blocks of light. For cutting-edge technology, from quantum computing to deep-tissue imaging, detecting every single photon counts.
Phys.org / New study reveals how space rocks become meteorites
What happens to a space rock as it falls through Earth's atmosphere and becomes a meteorite? By studying 75 meteorite falls captured on video and in photographs, researchers identified seven distinct phases in the journey ...
Phys.org / How fusion reactions can survive flaws—up to a point
Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have found that implosions designed for inertial fusion energy (IFE) can tolerate significant imperfections before performance abruptly declines, a finding that ...
Phys.org / One step closer to the ideal glass—simulations reveal hidden order at absolute zero
In the physical sense, glass is not limited to familiar window glass; it forms whenever a liquid is cooled so quickly that it cannot crystallize. As a result, glass has an amorphous structure—that is, its "building blocks" ...
Phys.org / New free-space optical link adds a wireless component to the nation's longest quantum network
There's a new lighthouse on Long Island. But instead of shining light to guide ships through waterways, this one transmits and receives particles of light that carry quantum information. Perched atop a seven-story building ...
Phys.org / Natural gas drilling could raise salt levels, in turn boosting radium in water
Pennsylvania ranks second in U.S. natural gas production, accounting for about one-fifth of U.S. output in 2024, and has one of the most extensive histories of energy extraction in the country. A team of researchers from ...
Phys.org / Wildlife trafficking spreads across social media, putting thousands of species at risk
Researchers monitoring online activity for six weeks in mid-2025 found primates, birds, snakes, frogs, orchids and many other wildlife groups advertised for sale across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. Wildlife is ...
Dialog / A bird's eye view of illegal logging and its consequences in the Peruvian Amazon
When I first arrived in Peru's Allpahuayo-Mishana National Reserve in 2005, a local youth surprised me with an offer to sell me a live owl, despite the fact that we were in a protected area where commercial hunting was prohibited. ...
Phys.org / Corners in focus: Metasurface enables motion tracking without digital image processing
A research team at City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) has developed a new optical corner-detection imaging method that uses azimuthal Hilbert transform metasurfaces and is designed to work as a universal framework. The ...
Phys.org / A 2-degree twist creates a nanoscale grid that traps light energy at room temperature
You may have once tried taking a close-up picture of a computer screen and noticed a wavy, rippling effect. This optical effect occurs whenever two fine, repeating grids overlap and slightly misalign, such as when the pixel ...
Phys.org / Catching cow burps in real time: Methane sensor matches industry monitor in early field test
Methane is a short-lived but powerful greenhouse gas; cutting methane emissions can slow near-term warming and improve air quality by reducing harmful ground-level ozone. As ruminants digest feed, they release methane—through ...
Phys.org / Shell-crushing predators may have sparked early Cenozoic boom in marine snail evolution
A large-scale study of nearly 700 species reveals the evolutionary relationships and history of Neogastropoda, a diverse group of marine snails. The findings provide new evidence for their single origin, identify four new ...
