Quantum Physics

DUNE will aim to study the properties of neutrinos in unprecedented detail The post US underground neutrino experiment begins cryostat installation appeared first on Physics World.

Monitored quantum systems purify according to common laws determined by the symmetry of their dynamics The post Purity versus scrambling: universal laws in quantum systems appeared first on Physics World.

Researchers have created a quantum computer that stores information in microscopic vibrations, potentially making quantum machines smaller, more powerful, and better at preserving information. The breakthrough successfully demonstrated advanced quantum calculations and could help overcome major barriers to practical quantum computing.

A proposed tabletop quantum sensor could match the precision of the best satellite measurements of frame dragging, a subtle effect predicted by Einstein's general relativity.

An international collaboration demonstrates that classical nonlinear dynamics can drive single- and two-photon states to thermalize, opening new avenues for simulating complex quantum many-body systems within accessible optical architectures.

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Ames National Laboratory have discovered a way to control the handedness of magnons, tiny magnetic waves that can carry information through materials. By changing the material's magnetic state with an external magnetic field, they were able to switch magnon behavior, a finding with potential applications in quantum information and quantum computing technologies. Their findings are published in Physical Review Letters.

Quantum computers could curb the vast energy demands of artificial intelligence data centers with their ability to run complex calculations, one of the tech's pioneers told AFP.

Energy can be carried in a number of ways: by electrons, the particles that underpin all modern electronics, as well as by quasiparticles, the results of different particles interacting with one another at the quantum level. Columbia chemist Milan Delor has been watching these different forms of energy flow with an instrument called stroboSCAT, a unique microscope that uses strobe-like light pulses to capture particles and quasiparticles as they move through different materials.

A research team led by Lu Haipeng, a professor in the Department of Chemistry at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), has achieved a breakthrough in preserving spin information for optoelectronic technologies. The team has developed a perovskite chiral multiple quantum-well system that maintains spin polarization approximately 300 times longer at room temperature. The study opens new possibilities for future quantum technologies and next-generation spin-based applications. The study was published in the journal Nature Photonics.

The tiny atomic defects so important for future quantum technologies can be difficult to spot. Fortunately, they leave behind some clues. The defects can alter how a material responds to light, producing a distinctive optical fingerprint that scientists can measure. The challenge is figuring out which fingerprints belong to which defects.

How can something remain intact when it should naturally break apart? This question has been addressed by researchers at RPTU. Their work has led to the experimental observation of an unusual quantum state in which two atoms remain bound together even though they possess enough energy to separate. The results have been published in the journal Nature Physics.

Scientists from Tokyo Metropolitan University have discovered that charged states made of two electrons and a positively charged hole (or vice versa) on atomically thin rolls of carbon atoms have a structure-derived "handedness" in how they interact with light. While electron-hole pairs, or "excitons," were known to keep the chirality of the underlying nanotube, the team showed that adding a charge to create "trions" does not change this property.

Scientists have observed a bizarre quantum state of matter that combines the structure of a crystal with the frictionless flow of a liquid, all at room temperature. The breakthrough overturns a major practical limitation of exotic quantum experiments and could help bring powerful new light-based computing and sensing technologies closer to reality.

Typically, after a physical system is disturbed, it can gradually return toward a state of thermal equilibrium by exchanging heat with its surroundings. Thermal equilibrium is a state in which there is no net transfer of heat between the system and its surroundings.

Next-generation experiments like DUNE and Hyper-Kamiokande aren’t optimized for identifying matter-antimatter asymmetry, say theorists The post Quantum information reveals limits of neutrino flavour measurements appeared first on Physics World.

Some quantum systems are so complex that even the most powerful supercomputers struggle to simulate their behavior. One

For the first time, an international team of researchers from Germany, Thailand, India, China and the United States has created a three-component Hubbard system with tunable interactions in the laboratory. In doing so, the team used a quantum gas microscope to make the individual atoms visible. The study, published in Science, provides an important foundation for future quantum simulations of nuclear physics and materials science.

Albert Einstein fought to save our everyday notion of reality from the strangeness of quantum mechanics. But those who set out to aid him keep poking holes in his argument. The post A Strange Quantum Theorem Has Killed Einstein’s Reality first appeared on Quanta Magazine

Author(s): Rachel BerkowitzRandom tangles of vortex lines have been observed untangling in an ultracold gas. [Physics 19, s137] Published Thu Nov 05, 2026

Wolfspeed has commercially introduced its proprietary silicon carbide (SiC) technology (TSiC), expanding the potential of silicon carbide to enable next-generation augmented reality (AR), quantum computing, and advanced optical applications, according to the company. SiC's high refractive index, low birefringence, hardness, and thermal conductivity make it a promising material for next-generation AR waveguides, supporting wider fields of view, improved image quality, and more compact wearable devices. Wolfspeed’s optical-grade TSiC substrates are engineered for exceptionally low optical absorption and superior wafer flatness, building on more than 35 years of SiC development for applications including LED technology. ...

Researchers at Tohoku University and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) have successfully controlled a unique quantum phenomenon—the quantum-geometric nonlinear Hall (QgNLH) state—using electric current for the first time. The breakthrough was achieved by revealing and exploiting the coupling between the spin structure and the QgNLH state in an electrically switchable chiral antiferromagnet.

Detecting a single photon is a challenge in itself. But what if you also want to know exactly how many photons arrive at a particular point at the same time? Physicist Erik Baalbergen is working on light detectors that can do just that. They form a key building block for the optical quantum computer of the future.

Researchers have proposed a breakthrough technique for reading quantum information without destroying the delicate states that make quantum computers work. By detecting an electrical signal generated by the qubit itself, their method achieved up to 99.85% accuracy in simulations and could make future quantum computers simpler and more efficient.

The principle "Work smarter, not harder!" apparently also applies to controlling quantum materials with light. Many of their fascinating properties depend on how the atoms are arranged in the crystal. Ultrashort laser pulses can be used to alter these structures in a targeted way—the light first excites electrons, whose changed energy and dynamics exert forces on the atomic nuclei and can thereby set the atoms in motion. Such processes unfold within femtoseconds, a millionth of a billionth of a second.

Researchers have observed unusual fractional quantum Hall states in very thin gallium arsenide quantum wells The post New fractional quantum Hall states appeared first on Physics World.

Imagine shuffling a deck of cards where some of the cards are fading just because of the way they interact with the external environment as you shuffle them. Your job is to figure out the interplay between the shuffling, or "imposed randomness," due to the way you shuffle your cards and how that relates to the fading as cards are exposed to the external environment.

Researchers from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw, the Military University of Technology (Poland), IBM Research Zurich and the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) have observed a new quantum state of matter known as a supersolid in an exciton-polariton Bose-Einstein condensate. Remarkably, the phenomenon occurs not at temperatures close to absolute zero, but at room temperature. The results have been published in Science Advances.

Researchers at the University of Regensburg and their international partners have found a way to significantly reduce errors in quantum bits. In an experiment, they demonstrated that a single additional measurement before a series of quantum operations can cut the error rate by more than half. The results have been published in Applied Physics Reviews.

Nonlocal correlations draw heat from a bath The post Cool correlations: quantum steering can make cooling more efficient appeared first on Physics World.

Quantum Design's acquisition of Oxford Instruments NanoScience has created a global company with the engineering firepower to create innovative measurement solutions and large-scale cryogenic systems for quantum computing and physics research The post Technology companies join forces to boost scientific discovery and quantum scale-up appeared first on Physics World.

One approach to making information storage in quantum computing less prone to errors is known as topological quantum computing. It relies on special quantum states that are expected to be more resistant to local disturbances.

Quantum computers rely on qubits as their units of information. To connect them into a larger network across long distances, they need to transmit quantum information using light.

How atoms are arranged inside materials can influence the behavior of electrons and the resulting electronic states. Kagome lattices, repeating arrangements of atoms forming triangles that share corners (with hexagonal spaces between them), have been linked with the emergence of unusual electronic states.

A major production milestone in a global mission to understand one of the Universe’s biggest mysteries — why

A Qubit Built by Chemists Most light-linked qubits come from defects that physicists find inside crystals such as

Author(s): Sophia ChenA new device uses millimeter-wave radiation to accurately read the states of superconducting qubits without altering them. [Physics 19, s140] Published Fri Oct 30, 2026

Quantum networks could one day connect quantum computers into more powerful systems and enable new forms of secure communication. But a fundamental obstacle stands in the way: Quantum information is extraordinarily fragile, and the entanglement between particles of light on which such networks would depend is easily disrupted.

Albert Einstein called quantum entanglement ‘spooky action at a distance,’ and the nickname has stuck for nearly 80

The word "vacuum" may conjure the image of empty space. Maybe you think of a region far outside the solar system without planets, debris, gas clouds or light. According to quantum theory, however, a vacuum is never truly empty. Quantum mechanics extends the Heisenberg uncertainty principle—which states that we cannot measure the position and the velocity of an object exactly at the same time—to a vacuum. The result is that a vacuum can never be still.

Marge Ryan of Johnson Matthey is our podcast guest The post From catalysts to quantum materials: exploring the future of platinum group metals appeared first on Physics World.

Theoretical physicists at Emory University have discovered a way to use light to detect the "spectral fingerprints" of anyons—exotic quasiparticles that emerge from the collective behavior of many electrons. Their findings are published in Physical Review Letters. The work offers a new tool for the study of anyons, which hold potential as fundamental building blocks for quantum computing.

NVision, a quantum technology company, has published a paper in Nature detailing an individually addressable organic molecular spin-photon interface, which the company identified as a key development on the road to connecting stationary qubits with photons. NVision also revealed a strategic partnership with thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) photonics leader HyperLight Corporation for the integration of its thin-film molecular qubits directly onto advanced PICs. According to NVision, its recent milestones open a path toward millions of qubits on chips compatible with standard foundry manufacturing, and establish a practical path to quantum computing at scale as a result, using photonic connectivity to link quantum resources within and...

Using a new slow-motion electron camera, physicists from Regensburg, Marburg and Jülich revealed how intense electric fields drive electrons in graphene, causing them to jump across energy gaps in a seemingly paradoxical manner. This was made possible by a novel combination of laser technology and electron microscopy.

iPronics, a developer of silicon photonics-based optical circuit switching for AI infrastructure, appointed co-founder and CTO Daniel Pérez-López CEO. Pérez-López launched iPronics after working on quantum photonics at Xanadu Quantum Technologies. Additionally, the company named Geoffrey Tate chairman of the board. Tate has spent 10 years at AMD running several business units, most recently as senior vice president of processors. The leadership transition follows iPronics’ recent $125 million Series B funding round, which includes strategic participation from NVIDIA. Sparrow leadership team (From left to right): Anne Marie Engtoft Meldgaard, chief commercial officer; Kurt Stokbro, executive advisor;...

New research shows that trapping spinons can create, rather than destroy, protected quantum behaviour at a material’s edges The post Trapping quasiparticles creates quantum behaviour appeared first on Physics World.

Researchers from Jülich, Aachen and Cologne have performed a quantum operation on a qubit in just 6.8 nanoseconds—with more than 99.98% accuracy. Such operations typically take several tens of nanoseconds in superconducting quantum computers. The paper was published in Nature Communications.

Another bombshell result shows how artificial intelligence is fueling fierce competition at the frontiers of math and physics

Adelaide University quantum engineers have found a new way to improve some of the world's most sensitive sensors of electromagnetic fields, a breakthrough that could help advance brain imaging, medical diagnostics, communications technology and next-generation quantum devices.

Quantum networks, systems that connect devices using quantum mechanical effects, could potentially allow users to share information more securely and efficiently. Building these networks typically entails linking stationary qubits, units of quantum information encoded in trapped ions or other physical systems, using photons (particles of light) transmitted through optical fibers.

Quantum computers need qubits that can be controlled both quickly and reliably. Yet making semiconductor spin qubits faster often makes them more sensitive to electrical noise, creating a difficult trade-off.

Scientists have discovered a way to operate multiple silicon qubits simultaneously with remarkable accuracy, overcoming a major challenge in scaling up quantum computers. Their new technique maintained accuracy of approximately 99.9% even when all five qubits were running at once, opening the door to larger and more powerful quantum processors.

One of the fundamental challenges of quantum computing is obtaining information from a quantum bit, or qubit. Unlike a conventional bit, which can be read repeatedly without altering its content, direct measurement of a quantum system typically causes the state to collapse before it can be determined. In other words, reading the information modifies it.

Quantum computers only work when a control system reliably delivers algorithms to the hardware while immediately detecting and

Expectations are high and billions are being invested in the quantum race. Doctoral researcher Christa Schauman explains how

Quantum technologies sound like science fiction. In a sense, they are. Technologies that use quantum effects can seem

Quantum systems can occupy superpositions, quantum states that combine different possibilities. For instance, a microwave field can be prepared in a superposition of an empty state and a state that contains microwave light.

Researchers have solved a long-standing challenge in understanding how tiny defects in materials like diamond and silicon carbide behave when exposed to light. Their new computational method revealed a surprisingly important energy-loss mechanism in silicon carbide that scientists had previously underestimated. The finding helps explain a mystery that has puzzled researchers for years and could improve the design of quantum computers and sensors.

If you wanted a Nobel Prize, you would do well to study neutrinos. To date, the Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded five times to research related to neutrino detection and discovery. This year, Francis Halzen earned the Nobel "for decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin."

A joint research team fabricated a two-dimensional structure that exhibits properties of both the honeycomb and Kagome lattices using organic molecules. They discovered that edge states specific to topological materials (states that exist only at the edges and are distinct from those in the interior) appear in this structure. The team included researchers from NIMS, Toyota Kosen (National Institute of Technology, Toyota College), Saga University, Nara Women's University, Kiel University (Germany) and other institutions.

New research started with a special material that behaves unusually when it's extremely cold—135 degrees below zero Fahrenheit (minus 93 degrees Celsius), close to the most frigid temperature ever recorded in Antarctica—and showed that the unusual behavior could be extended to well above room temperature—up to about 135 F (57 degrees Celsius), close to the highest heat ever measured in Death Valley, California.

Ever since quantum mechanics first described particles, like electrons, as rippling waves, researchers have wondered if those waves could be trapped in place. Writing today in Science a century later, a team of Columbia University researchers reports waves of electrons becoming trapped for the first time in a metal called Pd₅AlI₂.

Unlike classical physics, quantum mechanics generally cannot tell us exactly what will happen in an individual event. Instead, it predicts the probabilities of different outcomes. As one of the theory's early pioneers, Erwin Schrödinger played a key role in debates about what this randomness really means. However, part of his contribution has stayed hidden for more than 80 years.

Author(s): Paolo CrivelliA device that stores a single positron and controls its quantum states could measure its magnetic moment with unprecedented precision, testing a symmetry principle central to quantum field theory. [Physics 19, 132] Published Wed Oct 21, 2026

Quantum networks, systems that connect devices and allow them to exchange information encoded in the quantum states of particles, could enable more secure communications. To build these networks, physicists need to devise strategies that allow distant particles to share quantum states, preserving them long enough to perform calculations or enable communication between devices.

Researchers have developed a multi-agent AI system that converts plain-language research questions into executed, checked and reproducible quantum simulations using several specialist software packages The post Using AI agents to run quantum simulations appeared first on Physics World.

Such devices could tackle problems beyond the reach of today’s most powerful computers, researchers say. Researchers from Rutgers,

Molecules can spontaneously organize into complex, ordered structures through a process known as self-assembly. Among these structures, soft quasicrystals display unusual patterns that do not repeat regularly like conventional crystals. However, producing such structures with a uniform orientation over large areas remains a major challenge.

Siloton, which develops optical technology for medical imaging, has been awarded an £8.4 million ($11M) contract from Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation. The contract will accelerate development of its groundbreaking handheld eye imaging system, making detection and monitoring of retinal diseases more accessible to patients. Siloton team posing with their GiraffeOCT handheld retinal imaging device. Courtesy of Siloton. The contract will specifically help Siloton accelerate the design of the in-clinic and at-home versions of its GiraffeOCT optical coherence tomography (OCT) device, as well as complete trials on both systems. Siloton expects the funding could cut the development process by up to two years. Under the...

Light is one of the most powerful tools scientists have for probing matter. By interacting with electrons, light reveals how atoms, molecules and materials are structured and how they evolve in time. Highly energetic ultraviolet and X-ray photons are particularly attractive because they can access electrons located close to atomic nuclei, where each chemical element carries its own distinctive electronic fingerprint.

For nearly a century, physicists have relied on the Born rule to calculate the chances of different outcomes when they measure a quantum system. Yet despite decades of effort, nobody has managed to derive the rule from more basic mathematical principles without making assumptions about probability along the way.

The three-day event created a fun, vibrant and collaborative environment for ten teams of hackers to explore real-world problems that support business growth while also benefitting the wider world The post From space to folk music: quantum hackathon explores diverse use cases appeared first on Physics World.

For scientists, breakthroughs often stem from unexpected turns. A research team led by Oscar Dahlsten, an associate professor in the Department of Physics at City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK), set out to prove a theoretical limitation, only to discover a quantum solution. The finding breaks traditional physical constraints and introduces a strategy for harvesting energy from fluctuating sources.

Scientists have achieved a quantum breakthrough by creating an ultra-clean surface where individual molecules can maintain their delicate quantum properties at the fundamental limit. The discovery could unlock unprecedented control over molecules and help drive the next generation of quantum technologies.

Error correction creates qubits that glitch only 5 out of a million times, the first step toward a new phase for quantum computing.

The once-fringe quantum Many Worlds theory now seems much more likely

Voltage fluctuations, light fluctuations, temperature fluctuations—any fluctuations are troublesome and thus undesirable. They don't just cause discomfort; in engineering and medical applications, they affect the accuracy of measurements or introduce errors in controls. Even at the minute level of quantum phenomena, fluctuations are considered undesirable.

The Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS) has remeasured a key transition frequency of the strontium (Sr) atom for the first time in 88 years, since 1938, using a photonic grating chip. It has established a new absolute frequency value with a measurement uncertainty reduced by more than 50 times. By providing an accurate reference value for next-generation quantum technologies, this achievement is expected to contribute to the precise control and miniaturization of quantum devices, including atomic clocks and neutral-atom quantum computers. The work is published in the journal Metrologia.

Nature is the foremost international weekly scientific journal in the world and is the flagship journal for Nature Portfolio. It publishes the finest peer-reviewed research in all fields of science and technology on the basis of its originality, importance, interdisciplinary interest, timeliness, accessibility, elegance and surprising conclusions. Nature publishes landmark papers, award winning news, leading comment and expert opinion on important, topical scientific news and events that enable readers to share the latest discoveries in science and evolve the discussion amongst the global scientific community.

Nature is the foremost international weekly scientific journal in the world and is the flagship journal for Nature Portfolio. It publishes the finest peer-reviewed research in all fields of science and technology on the basis of its originality, importance, interdisciplinary interest, timeliness, accessibility, elegance and surprising conclusions. Nature publishes landmark papers, award winning news, leading comment and expert opinion on important, topical scientific news and events that enable readers to share the latest discoveries in science and evolve the discussion amongst the global scientific community.

Universal Quantum, a quantum computing company, has raised more than $100 million in Series A funding in around co-led by DCVC and Firgun Ventures. The funding will enable the company to scale globally and accelerate the development and commercialization of its modular technology, advancing a path towards fault-tolerant quantum computing. The capital will also support Universal Quantum’s recently announced expansion in Singapore, where it is establishing its first R&D center outside Europe, as well as expansion in the U.S., Japan, and across its German hub in Hamburg. Universal Quantum’s trapped-ion quantum computing system. Courtesy of Universal Quantum. Universal Quantum's approach links together, or tiles, many...

Claude’s Quantum Circuit Designs Cutting the estimated cost of simulating FeMoco, the iron-sulfur cluster bacteria use to fix

Universal Quantum, a quantum computing company, raised over $100 million in Series A funding in a funding round co-led by DCVC and Firgun Ventures. Universal Quantum’s trapped-ion quantum computing system. Courtesy of Universal Quantum. The funding will enable the company to scale globally and accelerate the development and commercialization of its modular technology, advancing a path towards fault-tolerant quantum computing. This capital will also support Universal Quantum’s recently announced expansion in Singapore, where it is establishing its first R&D center outside Europe, as well as expansion in the United States, Japan, and across its German hub in Hamburg.

This is the first of a two-part feature on quantum biology. In the second part, Songi Han and

Some quantum systems are so complex that even the most powerful supercomputers struggle to simulate their behavior. One solution is quantum simulation: building a controllable quantum system in the lab and tuning it to mimic the one researchers want to understand.

Whether we are waiting for a car windshield to defrost in winter or a warm drink to cool down, how long it takes for an object to settle into a stable, even temperature within its environment (thermal equilibrium) depends on numerous factors. These can include surface area, the material properties of an object and airflow.

Physicists have discovered a strange new state of quantum matter in which ultracold atoms defy familiar organizational rules, forming a highly excited yet surprisingly orderly configuration called a "fractional Fermi sea." The discovery challenges established quantum theories and hints at exotic quasiparticles that scientists have dubbed potential "super-Fermions."

Researchers have developed and demonstrated a new hybrid photonic platform that integrates quantum emitters with photonic devices, providing a way to reliably control the interaction between photons and quantum information carriers. The chip-based platform, which combines gallium phosphide (GaP) with a diamond substrate, could help make quantum networks more practical by providing a way to connect quantum devices over long distances.

Qubits, the quantum equivalent of digital bits, are fragile and prone to errors. That makes building reliable quantum computers extremely difficult. One fix has been to use traditional magic state distillation, which filters out flaws, but it is extremely resource-intensive.

Quantum computers represent a next step in the fast-paced evolution of technology. Using quantum bits (qubits), they have the potential to run certain calculations exponentially faster than conventional computers. However, developing and fine-tuning quantum computers requires an enormous number of repetitive tests. To accelerate quantum technology development, we need a method that can read quantum states at ultrafast speeds.

Atoms confined to a single line can bind into clusters called Bethe strings. A new experiment points to a mix of many such clusters, though the evidence is still indirect.

The researchers in the Quantum Detection Microscopy group at CIC nanoGUNE, in collaboration with chemists at CiQUS of the University of Santiago de Compostela, have demonstrated that adding or removing a single molecule from a quantum chain can fundamentally change its interaction with a superconductor.

Glimpses of the "gallium anomaly" were first seen in the mid-1990s, but it was first clearly discovered and stated in 2007 by neutrino physicist Carlo Giunti of Italy. The problem is simple to state but potentially very important: about 20% fewer electron neutrinos were seen to be captured by gallium nuclei than expected.

By Alius Noreika Key takeaways The deadline is next week, and it is not the one most people

Silicon spin qubits are a promising platform for building scalable quantum computers as they are compatible with the semiconductor manufacturing technologies used to produce today's computer chips. However, they have an important weakness: silicon spin qubits typically lose accuracy when several qubits are under parallel control. To be useful, quantum computers will need to operate many qubits simultaneously without compromising the accuracy of their operations.

The work could help improve quantum computers’ accuracy in complex calculations

Physicists at Auburn University have used flashes of laser light to bring order to tiny electrically charged "islands" inside a crystal. The discovery helps answer a decades-old question about how the material organizes itself and shows how light could be used to control its behavior—a step toward exploring new technologies for processing and storing information.

When light hits a tiny defect embedded in a solid material like diamond or silicon carbide, it can kick the defect's electrons into an excited state. These spin defects have the potential to be used as stable, readable qubits for quantum technologies, for example, quantum sensing. But modeling the full physics of their energetics over time—a key step in developing spin defects into new technologies—is a challenging task.

Quantum pioneer calls for more investment in Europe’s quantum industries The post Ignacio Cirac: Newton Medal winner looks to the future of quantum technology appeared first on Physics World.