Researchers from National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (NSRL), University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) have developed an improved TM₀₂₀-mode radiofrequency (RF) cavity with a novel elliptical choke design. This design addresses the critical issue of accelerating mode leakage, significantly enhancing stability and meeting the stringent requirements of the STCF collider rings at a beam current of up to 2 A.

Viruses exist at the boundary between living and non-living matter, while skin is a living interface between physics and biology, making them perfect—but until now overlooked—arenas for testing the interplay between quantum physics, biology and life. That’s according to arguments made by Connor Thompson, a PhD student in microbiology and immunology at the University of British Columbia, in Canada, and Samuel Morriss, a medical doctor based in Melbourne, Australia, whose two essays share the US$30,000 first prize in FQxI’s latest essay competition, presented in partnership with the Paradox Science Institute. The eight winners of the $53,000 competition—which asked “How Quantum is Life?”—were announced on 14th February, 2026.

Researchers have developed a dynamic three-dimensional terrain correction method for quantitative inversion of airborne gamma-ray spectrometer data, addressing long-standing challenges caused by complex terrain effects. The proposed approach significantly improves inversion accuracy and spatial consistency, offering a reliable solution for high-resolution airborne radiometric surveys in rugged landscapes.

A research team has developed a novel Time Projection Chamber (INPC-TPC) for high-precision neutron-induced fission cross-section measurements. Featuring a symmetrical dual-chamber structure and Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM)-based readout technology, the instrument effectively addresses core limitations of traditional detectors, such as poor particle identification and restricted dynamic range. Utilizing the H(n,n) elastic scattering cross-section as the reference standard, the detector successfully achieved precise fission fragment identification and accurate neutron beam spot measurement (relative error < 2%) during experiments at the CSNS Back-n white neutron beamline. This work lays a solid foundation for reducing the measurement uncertainty of actinide nuclides (e.g., ²³⁵U, ²³⁸U) fission cross-sections to below 1%, thereby advancing nuclear data applications in nuclear energy, astrophysics, and national defense.

Researchers have developed an AI-assisted method for muon scattering tomography that replaces manual parameter tuning with reinforcement learning. An AI agent evaluates reconstruction quality and automatically adjusts key PoCA settings in a closed loop, yielding clearer and more structurally faithful images within challenging dense and shielded environments. Across four experiments, the method demonstrated substantial average gains over the standard PoCA approach, including a 307% improvement in shape overlap accuracy, a 79% increase in structural similarity, and an 8.4% rise in peak signal-to-noise ratio. It also showed overall improvement against an iterative MLSD baseline. The study appears in Nuclear Science and Techniques 37, 81 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41365-026-01894-6

The research team led by Hanmin Huang and Bangkui Yu at the University of Science and Technology of China developed a palladium-catalyzed diastereoselective and enantioselective cascade cyclization strategy, achieving the modular synthesis of chiral nitrogen-bridged ring skeletons. Using readily available salicylaldehyde and aminodiene as starting materials, and based on the team's previously developed strategy of "in-situ generation of three-membered ring palladium active intermediates from aldehydes and amines," the bridged oxazole bicyclic compounds were constructed with high diastereoselectivity through a continuous cyclization process. This method exhibits excellent substrate universality, providing an efficient and precise route for synthesizing drug molecules with complex three-dimensional structures. The article was published as an open access Communication in CCS Chemistry, the flagship journal of the Chinese Chemical Society.

Study involving researchers from a FAPESP-supported center presents a new molecular architecture based on zirconium metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) designed for efficiently degrading emerging water contaminants.