Phys.org news
Phys.org / Ultrathin nanotubes reach 1 nanometer, opening path to smaller electronics
Researchers in Japan have created some of the world's smallest semiconducting nanotubes, structures 100,000 times thinner than a human hair. By growing molybdenum disulfide inside protective tubes of boron nitride, the researchers, ...
Phys.org / Overlooked DNA structures help organize the genome
Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered that little-studied DNA structures play a central role in organizing the human genome and controlling gene activity, according to a new study published in the Proceedings of ...
Phys.org / Bumble bees show spontaneous problem-solving, challenging big-brain assumptions
In a new study, bumble bees solve a completely novel object-manipulation task. What makes this behavior especially remarkable is that the bees had never been trained. The findings challenge the long-standing assumption that ...
Phys.org / Newfound velociraptor cousin probably glided on four 'wings' and hunted early birds
A fossil bed in northwestern China is littered with the remains of hundreds of prehistoric birds—including some whose broken bones were crushed into pellets, similar to those coughed up by modern owls. For years, scientists ...
Phys.org / Jupiter bow shock reveals electrons accelerating to relativistic speeds
Electrons around Jupiter have been caught in the process of being accelerated, revealing a potentially unified mechanism for particle acceleration. The findings, published in Nature, may help constrain how energetic particles ...
Phys.org / Atmosphere survival model refines search for habitable planets
Researchers have developed the Smaller Than Earth Habitability Model (STEHM) to assess which planets can maintain life-supporting atmospheres, focusing on size and atmospheric dynamics.
Phys.org / AI paired with tiny optical device corrects distorted light for sharper imaging
Blurry light from lens imperfections is a problem everywhere, from microscopes to telescopes to smartphone cameras. Using a tiny yet carefully engineered optical element and artificial intelligence, University of California ...
Phys.org / Quantum shell structure reveals new rule for proton-neutron pairing inside nuclei
Nuclear physicists used a little magic in their latest experiment conducted at the U.S. Department of Energy's Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, and the result has revealed surprising new information about the ...
Phys.org / AI-guided catalyst turns CO₂ and waste into fertilizer at industrially relevant rates
Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have developed a computation-guided strategy to produce urea more efficiently from carbon dioxide and nitrate. By combining large language models, density functional ...
Phys.org / Global mangrove forests rebound, offering hopeful sign for climate and coastal resilience
Mangrove forests, once considered one of the world's most threatened coastal ecosystems, are showing signs of recovery worldwide, according to new research from Tulane University that finds decades of losses largely offset ...
Phys.org / Teaching AI to design optical surfaces using real-world imperfections
Designing surfaces that precisely control how light behaves at the nanoscale is tricky. Optical Fourier surfaces, which are nanostructured gratings that redistribute light into specific directions and wavelengths, hold enormous ...
Phys.org / Wildfires reverse decade of ozone cleanup in the United States, study reveals
Ozone pollution has worsened in much of the continental United States over the past decade, fueled by wildfires and the long-distance transport of unhealthy air, according to a new study titled "Fires reverse progress toward ...
