News by Subject Chemistry & Physics

Using the X-ray laser European XFEL, a research team has investigated how water heats up under extreme conditions. In the process, the scientists were able to observe water that remained liquid even at temperatures of more than 170 degrees Celsius. The investigation revealed an anomalous dynamic behaviour of water, which is of fundamental importance for investigations of sensitive samples using X-ray lasers, as the scientists report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

A research team led by the University of Tsukuba investigated the acoustic properties of disordered lysozyme proteins by using terahertz spectroscopy. They found that the fractal nature of the proteins is responsible for its unusually large vibrations at low frequencies, which may lead to a better theory for disordered materials.

In a new study appearing in the journal Physical Review Letters, researchers describe a technique for using LEGO®-like elements at the scale of a few billionths of a meter. Further, they are able to cajole these design elements to self-assemble, with each LEGO® piece identifying its proper mate and linking up in a precise sequence to complete the desired nanostructure.

Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, together with colleagues from other universities, have discovered the possibility to prepare one-atom thin platinum for use as a chemical sensor. The results were recently published in the scientific journal Advanced Material Interfaces.

Researchers have used a combination of AI and quantum mechanics to reveal how hydrogen gradually turns into a metal inside giant planets.