Phys.org news

Phys.org / Strain turns non-chiral crystals left- or right-handed on demand

Mechanical strain is one of the most common tools used to tailor the properties of materials. In piezoelectric materials, stretching or compressing a crystal generates an electrical polarization. In piezomagnetic materials, ...

10 hours ago
Phys.org / The oceans near Australia may be the best places to fertilize for removing carbon dioxide

Deploying ocean iron fertilization—a strategy for carbon dioxide capture—in higher latitudes rather than near the equator could reduce environmental impacts while still achieving removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, ...

13 hours ago
Phys.org / Lake ice loss could accelerate after winter temperatures cross critical thresholds

For lakes across the Northern Hemisphere, winter ice is more than a frozen surface. It is a seasonal regulator that shapes underwater ecosystems and energy balance. But as the planet warms, this frozen season is disappearing ...

11 hours ago
Phys.org / One of industry's toughest lignin byproducts could become feedstock for valuable chemicals

The pulp and paper industry, which manufactures everything from tissue paper to cardboard, also generates a significant yet often overlooked byproduct—a complex polymer called lignin. Around 100 million tons of lignin are ...

11 hours ago
Phys.org / Curiosity Mars rover discovers field of honeycomb textures

As NASA's Curiosity rover recently began climbing a Martian valley nicknamed "Valle Grande," it sent back images that were a familiar sight to mission scientists: honeycomb-like textures called polygonal fractures, each about ...

17 hours ago
Phys.org / Little red dots may mark temporary black hole phase

Since their discovery by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope in 2022, little red dots (LRDs) have been the subject of great interest to astronomers. Understanding the nature of these extremely distant, compact red sources has ...

15 hours ago
Phys.org / Rare-earth ions could enable telecom-ready control of interacting qubits

Quantum technologies are devices and systems that exploit the laws of quantum mechanics and could perform tasks that are difficult or impossible to tackle using their classical counterparts. These technologies process and ...

22 hours ago
Phys.org / What sheep's teeth can tell us about life in a medieval Kazakhstan town

You might not often think about the molars of livestock, but everything from the grass they eat to the water they drink can tell a story about how people lived centuries ago. An international collaboration led by University ...

12 hours ago
Phys.org / An entire world of fungi nearly a third of a mile underground could affect carbon storage estimates

Hundreds of feet below Earth's surface, rocks and water teem with fungi and support complex ecosystems of tiny organisms, according to a University of Michigan study that finds fungi are far more abundant deep underground ...

17 hours ago
Phys.org / A mechanically tunable molecular switch for circularly polarized light emission

Over the past few decades, scientists have become increasingly interested in developing materials that do not simply withstand mechanical forces but instead respond to them in useful, detectable ways. For example, it is now ...

13 hours ago
Phys.org / A step closer to artificial organs: UV light shapes arteriole-scale hydrogel vessels

The creation of fully artificial organs is a sci-fi dream, and researchers in Japan may have brought it one step closer to reality by developing a new photofabrication technique (i.e., a light-controlled synthetic method) ...

13 hours ago
Phys.org / Icelandic fish 'hot tubs' reveal genetic adaptations to warming—and unexpected overeating

New research, led by the University of Glasgow reveals that adaptation to warmer waters causes fish to display a range of behavioral and biological differences, including obesity, overeating and lower metabolism.

14 hours ago