Phys.org news

Phys.org / New cable design mitigates flaws in superconducting wires

When current flows through a wire, it doesn't always have a perfect path. Tiny defects within the wire mean current must travel a more circuitous route, a problem for engineers and manufacturers seeking reliable equipment.

Nov 18, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Physicists drive antihydrogen breakthrough at CERN with record trapping technique

Physicists from Swansea University have played the leading role in a scientific breakthrough at CERN, developing an innovative technique that increases the antihydrogen trapping rate by a factor of ten.

Nov 18, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Ancient and colonial legacies continue to shape Amazon forest biodiversity today

Human influence across centuries continues to define biodiversity and carbon storage in the world's largest rainforest, according to a new international study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ...

Nov 18, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / CT scans reveal hidden details of ancient copper smelting in early Iran

About 5,000 years ago, people living in what is now Iran began extracting copper from rock by processing ore, an activity known as smelting. This monumental shift gave them a powerful new technology and may have marked the ...

Nov 18, 2025 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Wine grape still carries molecular memory of its ancestry after 400 years, study finds

About 400 years ago, a cross between cabernet franc and sauvignon blanc gave birth to cabernet sauvignon. Today, cabernet sauvignon is the world's most-planted wine grape, dominating vineyards from Napa to Bordeaux. New research ...

Nov 18, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Sharper MRI scans may be on horizon thanks to new physics-based model

Researchers at Rice University and Oak Ridge National Laboratory have unveiled a physics-based model of magnetic resonance relaxation that bridges molecular-scale dynamics with macroscopic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) ...

Nov 18, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Researchers decode the chemistry behind a deadly genetic disorder

Northeastern University researchers used an original machine learning tool to predict how genetic mutations cause a rare metabolic disease known as OTC deficiency, uncovering some underlying biochemical mechanisms at play ...

Nov 18, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / How bacteria 'feel' surfaces: Fluorescent probe visualizes and quantifies membrane tension

In natural environments, bacteria rarely live as free-swimming cells but are attached to surfaces as biofilms in medical devices, mobile phones or human tissue. The bacterial behavior, how they attach and grow, group together ...

Nov 18, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Quantum-centric supercomputing simulates supramolecular interactions

A team led by Cleveland Clinic's Kenneth Merz, Ph.D., and IBM's Antonio Mezzacapo, Ph.D., is developing quantum computing methods to simulate and study supramolecular processes that guide how entire molecules interact with ...

Nov 18, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / Efficient quantum process tomography for enabling scalable optical quantum computing

Optical quantum computers are gaining attention as a next-generation computing technology with high speed and scalability. However, accurately characterizing complex optical processes, where multiple optical modes interact ...

Nov 18, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Quantum imaging settles 20-year debate on gold surface electron spin direction

Researchers at the Institute for Molecular Science (IMS) have definitively resolved a two-decade-long controversy regarding the direction of electron spin on the surface of gold.

Nov 18, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Algorithm finds smallest dataset that guarantees optimal solutions to complex problems

Determining the least expensive path for a new subway line underneath a metropolis like New York City is a colossal planning challenge—involving thousands of potential routes through hundreds of city blocks, each with uncertain ...

Nov 18, 2025 in Other Sciences