Meet the electric life forms that live on pure energy - life - 16 July 2014 - New Scientist

Meet the electric life forms that live on pure energy - life - 16 July 2014 - New Scientist: Unlike any other living thing on Earth, electric bacteria use energy in its purest form – naked electricity in the shape of electrons harvested from rocks and metals...

First they measure the natural voltage across the sediment, before applying a slightly different one. A slightly higher voltage offers an excess of electrons; a slightly lower voltage means the electrode will readily accept electrons from anything willing to pass them off. Bugs in the sediments can either "eat" electrons from the higher voltage, or "breathe" electrons on to the lower-voltage electrode, generating a current. That current is picked up by the researchers as a signal of the type of life they have captured...

"This is huge. What it means is that there's a whole part of the microbial world that we don't know about..."

First Evidence Of A Correction To The Speed of Light — The Physics arXiv Blog — Medium

First Evidence Of A Correction To The Speed of Light — The Physics arXiv Blog — Medium: Because all previous speed-of-light calculations have relied only on general relativity, they do not take into account the tiny effects of quantum mechanics. But these effects are significant over such long distances and through such a large mass as the Milky Way, says Franson...

Franson’s idea is that the gravitational potential must influence the electron-positron pair because they have mass. “Roughly speaking, the gravitational potential changes the energy of a virtual electron-positron pair, which in turn produces a small change in the energy of a photon,” he says. “This results in a small correction to the angular frequency of a photon and thus its velocity.”

Scientists discover how to turn light into matter after 80-year quest

Scientists discover how to turn light into matter after 80-year quest: The collider experiment that the scientists have proposed involves two key steps. First, the scientists would use an extremely powerful high-intensity laser to speed up electrons to just below the speed of light. They would then fire these electrons into a slab of gold to create a beam of photons a billion times more energetic than visible light.
The next stage of the experiment involves a tiny gold can called a hohlraum (German for 'empty room'). Scientists would fire a high-energy laser at the inner surface of this gold can, to create a thermal radiation field, generating light similar to the light emitted by stars.
They would then direct the photon beam from the first stage of the experiment through the centre of the can, causing the photons from the two sources to collide and form electrons and positrons. It would then be possible to detect the formation of the electrons and positrons when they exited the can.

‘Hyperbolic metamaterials’ closer to reality | KurzweilAI

‘Hyperbolic metamaterials’ closer to reality | KurzweilAI: The hyperbolic metamaterial behaves as a metal when light is passing through it in one direction and like a dielectric in the perpendicular direction. This “extreme anisotropy” leads to “hyperbolic dispersion” of light and the ability to extract many more photons from devices than otherwise possible, resulting in high performance...

The list of possible applications for metamaterials includes a “planar hyperlens” that could make optical microscopes 10 times more powerful and able to see objects as small as DNA, advanced sensors, more efficient solar collectors, and quantum computing.

Scientists May Have Decoded One of the Secrets to Superconductors | Science | WIRED

Scientists May Have Decoded One of the Secrets to Superconductors | Science | WIRED: ...ripples of electrons inside the superconductors that are called charge density waves. The fine-grained structure of the waves, reported in two new papers by independent groups of researchers, suggests that they may be driven by the same force as superconductivity. Davis and his colleagues directly visualized the waves in a study posted online in April...

It seemed possible that if the force shaping electrons into charge density waves could be suppressed, its rival, the force that forms superconducting pairs, would flourish. But some researchers argued that the ripples of electrons were merely a surface anomaly and irrelevant to superconductivity.

The community remained divided until 2012, when two groups using a technique called resonant X-ray scattering managed to detect charge density waves deep inside cuprates, cementing the importance of the waves...

Orbital computing: An amazing atomic-level tech for future computers | ExtremeTech

Orbital computing: An amazing atomic-level tech for future computers | ExtremeTech: He calls the idea “orbital computing” since the bit... would be the orbits of electrons around the nucleus of an atom. The goal is to be able to probe the electron clouds of single atoms using terahertz waves of just the right size.

In materials like these, the macroscopic properties (like conductance) are controlled mainly by electron orbits known as “d-orbitals.” The state of these d-orbitals can be readily observed with X-rays, and they can be controlled as easily as adjusting the temperature. But temperature or other gross manipulations are relatively slow ways to try to read or write data, compact bunches of T-rays does the trick much better.

Superconductivity in orbit: Scientists find new path to loss-free electricity

Superconductivity in orbit: Scientists find new path to loss-free electricity: "For the first time, we obtained direct experimental evidence of the subtle changes in electron orbitals by comparing an unaltered, non-superconducting material with its doped, superconducting twin," said Brookhaven Lab physicist and project leader Yimei Zhu...

The Brookhaven researchers used a technique called quantitative convergent beam electron diffraction (CBED) to reveal the orbital clouds with subatomic precision...

The researchers first examined the electron clouds of non-superconducting samples of barium iron arsenic. The CBED data revealed that the arsenic atoms—placed above and below the iron in a sandwich-like shape (see image)—exhibited little shift or polarization of valence electrons. However, when the scientists transformed the compound into a superconductor by doping it with cobalt, the electron distribution radically changed.

'Accelerator on a chip' demonstrated

'Accelerator on a chip' demonstrated: ...electrons are first accelerated to near light-speed in a conventional accelerator. Then they are focused into a tiny, half-micron-high channel within a fused silica glass chip just half a millimeter long. The channel had been patterned with precisely spaced nanoscale ridges. Infrared laser light shining on the pattern generates electrical fields that interact with the electrons in the channel to boost their energy.

Physicists Net Fractal Butterfly: Scientific American

Physicists Net Fractal Butterfly: Scientific American: ...the pattern describes the behavior of electrons in extreme magnetic fields...

...It was known at the time that electrons under the influence of a magnetic field would race around in circles. But Hofstadter found that in theory, if the electrons were confined inside a crystalline atomic lattice, their motion would become complicated. As the magnetic field was cranked up, the energy levels that define the motion of electrons would split again and again. When represented on a graph, those energy levels revealed a pattern that looked like a butterfly — and continued to do so, even when zoomed in to infinitely small scales...

 In May, researchers reported that they had stacked a single sheet of graphene, in which carbon atoms are arranged like a honeycomb, on top of a sheet of honeycombed boron nitride. The layers create a repeating pattern that provides a larger target for magnetic fields than the hexagons in each material — effectively magnifying the field.

Quantum effects in nanowires at room temperature

Quantum effects in nanowires at room temperature: Further examination of the nanowires formed produced namely a surprising discovery: nearly all the wires that were formed had a length of 4.8 nanometers, or multiples thereof, and they nearly all contained twelve iridium atoms, or a multiple thereof. The researchers found the explanation for this in quantum effects. The wires of 4.8 nanometers (or multiples thereof) appear to be electronically stabilized by conduction electrons whose (half) wavelength (or a multiple thereof) fits precisely in the nanowire. The existence of these standing electron waves in the nanowires could be demonstrated experimentally. As this stabilizing effect will not occur in nanowires of iridium of a different length, they are formed more slowly.

Super-accurate atomic clock doubles up as quantum sim - physics-math - 08 August 2013 - New Scientist

Super-accurate atomic clock doubles up as quantum sim - physics-math - 08 August 2013 - New Scientist: Electrons' behaviour inside solids can be physically modelled using networks of atoms cooled to trillionths of a degree above absolute zero...

...she and her colleagues have stumbled upon a way to mimic quantum behaviour in a system several orders of magnitude warmer: an atomic clock...

Rey says that the strontium atoms in the ground state can be used to simulate spin-down electrons, and the excited atoms, spin-up electrons. Tracking the emergence and details of the interactions between the atoms could then shed light on the nature of the quantum interactions between electrons in magnets.

What does mercury being liquid at room temperature have to do with Einstein’s theory of relativity? | The Curious Wavefunction, Scientific American Blog Network

What does mercury being liquid at room temperature have to do with Einstein’s theory of relativity? | The Curious Wavefunction, Scientific American Blog Network:  From Niels Bohr’s theory of atomic structure we know that the velocity of an electron is proportional to the atomic number of an element. For light elements like hydrogen (atomic number 1) the velocity is insignificant compared to the speed of light so relativity can be essentially ignored. But for the 1s electron of mercury (atomic number 80) this effect becomes significant; the electron approaches about 58% of the speed of light, and its mass increases to 1.23 times its rest mass. Relativity has kicked in. Since the radius of an electron orbit in the Bohr theory (orbital to be precise) goes inversely as the mass, this mass increase results in a 23% decrease in the orbital radius. This shrinkage makes a world of difference since it results in stronger attraction between the nucleus and the electrons, and this effect translates to the outermost 6s orbital as well as to other orbitals. The effect is compounded by the more diffuse d and f orbitals insufficiently shielding the s electrons. Combined with the filled nature of the 6s orbital, the relativistic shrinkage makes mercury very reluctant indeed to share its outermost electrons and form strong bonds with other mercury atoms.

The bonding between mercury atoms in small clusters thus mainly results from weak Van der Waals forces which arise from local charge fluctuations in neighboring atoms rather than the sharing of electrons.

When fluid dynamics mimic quantum mechanics | KurzweilAI

When fluid dynamics mimic quantum mechanics | KurzweilAI: In the experiments reported in PRE, the researchers mounted a shallow tray with a circular depression in it on a vibrating stand. They filled the tray with a silicone oil and began vibrating it at a rate just below that required to produce surface waves.

They then dropped a single droplet of the same oil into the bath. The droplet bounced up and down, producing waves that pushed it along the surface.

The waves generated by the bouncing droplet reflected off the corral walls, confining the droplet within the circle and interfering with each other to create complicated patterns. As the droplet bounced off the waves, its motion appeared to be entirely random, but over time, it proved to favor certain regions of the bath over others...

The statistical description of the droplet’s location is analogous to that of an electron confined to a circular quantum corral and has a similar, wavelike form.

Particle Containing 4 Quarks Is Confirmed for First Time

Particle Containing 4 Quarks Is Confirmed for First Time:  One side proposes that the particle is actually a union of two ordinary particles called mesons, which contain one quark and one antiquark. Zc(3900) particles could be made up of two mesons joined by a loose connection to form a molecule-like structure...



Other theorists have tentatively labelled the new particle a true tetraquark — four quarks stuck together tightly to form a compact ball...  Such pairings do not occur in any known particle and would thus introduce new building blocks of matter...

Proponents of the tetraquark theory point out that a ‘molecule’ made of mesons should split easily into two halves, and that such a breakdown has not appeared in the data. “The signature of a molecule is not seen, which favours the tetraquark picture...”

Giant, Heavy and Hollow: Physicists Create Extreme Atoms

Giant, Heavy and Hollow: Physicists Create Extreme Atoms: “If you tune your X-rays properly, you can pick which shell you want to empty out first,” says Young. “Being able to control the inner-shell dynamics is very cool.” The current record for this kind of atom-hollowing was reported last November by a group at the Center for Free-electron Laser Science in Hamburg, Germany, which used the SLAC laser to strip away, from the inside out, the 36 inner electrons of a 54-electron-strong xenon atom...

In 2008, researchers led by Dunning reported that they had managed to squeeze the normally spread-out electron into a tight packet that briefly orbited the nucleus. Last year, they added radio waves that enabled that motion to be maintained indefinitely. “It only took a century, but we recreated Bohr's atom,” says Dunning proudly...

By 2002, two collaborations had been able to make as many as 50,000 atoms of antihydrogen, but the atoms quickly annihilated on the walls of their container. It took until 2010 before researchers at ALPHA showed how to trap the atoms using three magnets with a combined field sufficient to restrain antihydrogen, with its tiny magnetic moment. At that time, the antimatter was held for just 170 milliseconds, and only about one atom was trapped for every eight times the group ran the 20–30 minute experiment, says Hangst. But the team has improved its equipment to trap one atom per experiment, and hold it for about 1,000 seconds...

A Snapshot of the Inside of an Atom - ScienceNOW

A Snapshot of the Inside of an Atom - ScienceNOW: ...the team first fired two lasers at hydrogen atoms inside a chamber, kicking off electrons at speeds and directions that depended on their underlying wave functions. A strong electric field inside the chamber guided the electrons to positions on a planar detector that depended on their initial velocities rather than on their initial positions. So the distribution of electrons striking the detector matched the wave function the electrons had at the moment they left their hydrogen nuclei behind. The apparatus displays the electron distribution on a phosphorescent screen as light and dark rings, which the team photographed using a high-resolution digital camera.

Laser empties atoms from the inside out

Laser empties atoms from the inside out: ...it is possible to remove the two most deeply bound electrons from atoms, emptying the inner most quantum shell and leading to a distinctive plasma state...


"At such extraordinary intensities electrons move at close to the speed of light and as they move they create perhaps the most intense X-rays ever observed on Earth. These X-rays empty the atoms from the inside out..."


The analysis showed the mechanism for hollow atom generation was not due to the collision of electrons or driven by the laser photons, but was driven by the resulting radiation field from the interaction.

Topology: The Secret Ingredient In The Latest Theory of Everything

Topology: The Secret Ingredient In The Latest Theory of Everything: Today, Wen combines topology, symmetry and quantum mechanics in a new theory that predicts the existence of new states of matter, unifies various puzzling phenomena in solid state physics and allows the creation artificial vacuums populated with artificial photons and electrons...

Xiao-Gang Wen's approach is to explore the properties of matter when the topological links between particles become much more general and complex. He generalises these links, thinking of them as strings that can connect many  particles together. In fact, he considers the way many strings can form net-like structures that have their own emergent properties...
That makes string nets a kind of "quantum ether" through which electromagnetic waves travel. That's a big claim.

Accelerated electrons enable ‘extraordinarily strong’ negative refraction

Accelerated electrons enable ‘extraordinarily strong’ negative refraction: Researchers at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), collaborating with the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, have demonstrated a new way of achieving negative refraction in a metamaterial — as large as -700, more than a 100 times larger than most previously reported...
The underlying physics of previous work in this field has often involved an entity called magnetic inductance. Ham’s research group instead explored kinetic inductance, which is the manifestation of the acceleration of electrons subjected to electric fields, according to Newton’s second law of motion...


To obtain the large kinetic inductance, Ham and Yoon’s work employs a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG), which forms at the interface of two semiconductors, gallium arsenide and aluminum gallium arsenide...
The resulting movements of electrons in these strips were “felt” by the neighboring strips to the right, where electrons are consequently accelerated.
In this way, the proof-of-concept device propagates an effective wave to the right, in a direction perpendicular to the strips, each of which acts as a kinetic inductor due to the electrons’ acceleration therein. This effective wave proved to exhibit what the researchers call a “staggering” degree of negative refraction.

Chemical bond discovered that only exists in space

Chemical bond discovered that only exists in space: The bond, of the chemical variety, occurs in the presence of very strong magnetic fields, such as those found around ultra-dense white dwarf stars...
They also exhibit super-strong magnetic fields on the order of 100,000 tesla – 10 billion times greater than Earth's magnetic field...

"Chemistry and molecular physics become very different in the presence of a strong magnetic field..."
With this in mind, the researchers used quantum chemical simulations to model chemical bonding in hydrogen and helium atoms in the magnetic field of a white dwarf. In both cases, the atoms were drawn into strongly bonded pairs.

Because the electrons in these bonded atoms occupied anti-bonding orbitals – which is forbidden in both types of known chemical bond – the researchers say this is a new type of bond. They have dubbed it "perpendicular paramagnetic bonding".