Physics

New housemasters for East Campus, The Warehouse

Explained: Quark-gluon plasmaBy colliding particles, physicists hope to recreate the earliest moments of our universe, on a much smaller scale.

Explained: The Carnot LimitLong before the nature of heat was understood, the fundamental limit of efficiency of heat-based engines was determined

Mysterious quantum forces unraveledMIT researchers find a way to calculate the effects of Casimir forces, offering a way to keep micromachines’ parts from sticking together.

New project aims for fusion ignitionMIT-led Ignitor reactor could be the world’s first to reach major milestone, perhaps paving the way for eventual power production.

New phenomenon found in internal wavesMIT team shows that waves inside oceans, air and stars are filtered and reflected by layers.

Explained: ThermoelectricityTurning temperature differences directly into electricity could be an efficient way of harnessing heat that is wasted in cars and power plants.

Toward more efficient wireless power deliveryLatest research shows that efficiency improves when multiple devices are charged at once.

Michael S. Feld, physics professor, dies at age 69Made fundamental contributions in the field of laser science; applied physics to biomedical problems

Zwierlein named ONR Young Investigator

Charles Batterman, longtime MIT diving coach, dies at age 87A former national champion, he pioneered the use of physics principles in the analysis of dives.

Crossing a threshold of particle physicsScientists celebrate as the Large Hadron Collider achieves its highest-energy collisions yet.

Bacteria divide like clockworkMIT researchers show how circadian rhythms in bacteria control their rate of reproduction.

Insulators made into conductorsMIT team coaxes polymers to line up, transforming them into materials that could dissipate heat.

Big power from tiny wiresNew discovery shows carbon nanotubes can produce powerful waves that could be harnessed for new energy systems.

Life beyond our universeMIT physicists explore the possibility of life in universes with laws different from our own.

Unraveling black hole spinRetrograde spin of supermassive black holes may create jets that control galaxy evolution

Record-breaking collisionsInitial results from high-energy proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider offer first glimpse of physics at new energy frontier.

Powering cube satellitesAn electric propulsion technology for miniature satellites aims to give them more mobility — and may eventually allow them to take on deep-space missions.

Peering inside an artificial sunTechniques developed by MIT center provide detailed images from the inside of hellishly hot core of advanced fusion experiments

Levitating magnet brings space physics to fusionTests on a machine that mimics a planet’s magnetic field show that it may offer an ‘alternative path’ to taming nuclear fusion for power generation.

Jacqueline Hewitt reappointed Kavli Institute director

Senior wins Churchill scholarshipMaria Monks will pursue graduate studies in mathematics in Britain

Team predicts satellite could locate hundreds of Earth-sized planetsResearchers say proposed satellite could represent astronomy’s ‘next big leap’ — one that may help find signs of life elsewhere in the universe.

Closing in on dark matter?Physicists detect two candidate dark matter interactions, but say the data are not conclusive.

‘Micro-ants’: Tiny conveyor belts for the 21st centuryA new method of moving tiny particles using magnetic polymer beads and magnetic fields could find uses in microchips and in medicine

Cancer research gets physical5-year grant from the National Cancer Institute will fund projects by physicists that give a new view of cancer cells.