atomic

Physicists develop method to detect single atomic defects in semiconductors

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Michigan State University combined terahertz laser light, shown as a red wavy arrow, with a scanning tunneling microscope, or STM, tip — the dark pyramid shape that exchanges a red electron with a sample shown with a blue surface. Credit: Eve Ammerman One of the challenges of cramming smarter, more powerful electronics into ever-shrinking devices … Read more

Ultra-precise atomic clock doubles previous accuracy, could detect dark matter

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Time: It bends and curves, or appears to speed up or slow down, depending on your position or perception. So precisely measuring its passage is one of the most fundamental tasks in physics—and could help us land on Mars or even observe dark matter. Now, physicists from the US National Institute of Standards and Technology … Read more

Physicists’ laser experiment excites atomic nucleus, potentially enabling new type of atomic clock

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Laser light passing through the transparent crystal and exciting the thorium core. Credit: James Terhune, Hudson Group, UCLA For nearly 50 years, physicists have dreamed of unlocking the secrets of increasing the energy state of the nucleus of an atom using a laser. This achievement would make it possible to replace today’s atomic clocks with … Read more

Redefining Time: US Builds World’s Most Accurate Atomic Clock Ever

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Researchers at JILA, a US research institute, have developed a new light-based atomic clock that is so precise that it can measure the smallest effects predicted by Einstein’s general theory of relativity. The clock will lead to a more precise definition of a second and could even lead to the discovery of new underground mineral … Read more

The world’s most accurate and precise atomic clock pushes boundaries in physics

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An extremely cold gas of strontium atoms is trapped in a web of light known as an optical lattice. The atoms are held in an ultrahigh vacuum environment, meaning there is almost no air or other gases present. This vacuum helps preserve the atoms’ delicate quantum states, which are fragile. The red dot you see … Read more

The atomic bomb-sized explosion in Russia may have been caused by a black hole

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A gigantic explosion that shook part of Russia more than a century ago has never been categorically explained. And yet, some scientists believe this could be the result of a very close encounter with a mysterious form of black hole. The extraordinary explosion occurred just after 7 a.m. on June 30, 1980, over the Podkamennaya … Read more

A star that exploded like an atomic bomb still raises questions half a century later

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a galactic disc of gas sucks the light off a closer red star.

The aftermath of a thermonuclear explosion in a double star system about 3,400 light-years away has been observed by the Hubble Space Telescope. HM Sagittae, or simply HM Sge, is a so-called symbiotic system, in which a white dwarf feeds on a companion red giant star. The stolen material forms an accretion disk that swirls … Read more

Scientists discover that a single atomic defect in 2D material can retain quantum information at room temperature

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This article was reviewed according to Science fact checked peer-reviewed publication trusted source proofread OK! Scaling of spin coherence under dynamic decoupling. aDynamic disconnection measurements with Nπ refocusing pulses, with each measurement suitable for exp[−(t/TDD)α]. bSpin coherence time TDD (purple triangles) as a function of the number of refocusing pulses Nπ. Credit: Natural materials (2024). … Read more