Physics

MIT researchers discover a new kind of magnetismExperiments demonstrate ‘quantum spin liquid,’ which could have applications in new computer memory storage.

Physics receives 2012 APS award for improving undergraduate physics educationOne of four institutions recognized

When the first stars blinked onThe very first stars may have turned on when the universe was 750 million years old.

GRAIL reveals a battered lunar historyTwin spacecraft create a highly detailed gravity map of the moon, finding an interior pulverized by early impacts.

Lindsey Anne Gilman: Better boiling for more efficient energy production

Maria Zuber appointed vice president for researchClaude Canizares will take a new role as a vice president with responsibility for international partnerships.

Proving quantum computers feasibleWith a new contribution to probability theory, researchers show that relatively simple physical systems could yield powerful quantum computers.

Lead-proton collisions yield surprising resultsUnexpected data from the Large Hadron Collider suggest the collisions may be producing a new type of matter.

All that is solid melts into air: Tomás Saraceno visits MITCAST visiting artist creates inflatable and airborne biospheres: speculative models for alternate ways of living.

Funneling the sun’s energyMIT engineers propose a new way of harnessing photons for electricity, with the potential for capturing a wider spectrum of solar energy.

New metamaterial lens focuses radio wavesDevice could improve satellite and molecular imaging.

It pays to cooperateYeast cells that share food have a survival edge over their freeloading neighbors — particularly when there is bacterial competition.

Undergraduate Winters presents winning poster at APS annual meetingDepartment of Nuclear Science and Engineering junior wins one of three poster awards.

Sitting still or going hunting: Which works better?If you’re a microbe floating in the ocean, there’s no single best strategy for getting food, MIT research shows.

Composing for loudspeakers: computer music pioneer John Chowning visits MITThe inventor of FM synthesis, Chowning revolutionized the music industry; saw a glimpsing into the future of music at the Institute.

‘Invisibility’ could be a key to better electronicsMIT team applies technology developed for visual ‘cloaking’ to enable more efficient transfer of electrons.

Nuclear physicist Peter T. Demos dies at 94Longtime faculty member guided MIT’s Bates Linear Accelerator from a groundbreaking idea to a globally renowned center for the study of nuclear structure and reactions.

The mathematics of leaf decayA mathematical model reveals commonality within the diversity of leaf decay.

Probing the mysteries of cracks and stressesAnalysis of molecular-level fracture and stress mechanisms could have broad implications for understanding materials’ behavior.

Watching electrons move at high speedNew MIT system allows femtosecond-resolution movie of electrons in a topological insulator, a promising new electronic material.

Four from MIT win NIH grantsBrown, Gore, Ploegh and Zhang receive grants for innovative biomedical research.

A one-way street for spinning atomsWork correlating ultracold atoms’ spin with their direction of motion may help physicists model new circuit devices and unusual phases of matter.

Patterning defect-free nanocrystal films with nanometer resolutionNew process developed at MIT could enable better LED displays, solar cells and biosensors — and foster basic physics research.

Graphene’s behavior depends on where it sitsNew findings show that the material beneath the thin carbon sheets determines how they react chemically and electrically.

Riding herd on photonsA new ‘metamaterial’ prevents electromagnetic waves from reflecting backward, pointing the way toward computer chips that move data with light.

Alan Guth wins $3 million Fundamental Physics PrizeMIT physicist among nine inaugural winners of prize awarded by Russia’s Milner Foundation.

Single-photon transmitter could enable new quantum devicesLong-sought goal for quantum devices — the ability to transmit single photons while blocking multiple photons — is finally achieved.

A far-off solar systemResearchers measure the orientation of a multiplanet system and find it very similar to our own solar system.