Researchers from Bar-Ilan University have successfully recreated key features of black hole physics in a laboratory setting using an innovative optical system that mimics how black holes behave after violent cosmic events such as collisions or mergers.

What if AI could discover breakthrough materials before we even test them? A new physics-informed AI model makes discovery faster and more reliable. This approach could reshape the future of electronics.

Metals such as titanium are prized for their strength, light weight, and resistance to corrosion, making them essential for aircraft, spacecraft, and medical implants. Now, a joint research team has developed a groundbreaking processing technique that dramatically improves the strength and toughness of titanium alloys—in just a few milliseconds.

By directing pulses of laser light at atoms, researchers can study how radioactive elements decay in a matter of seconds. The method is described in a new thesis from the University of Gothenburg, which shows that the atomic nuclei of the elements neptunium and fermium are shaped like rugby balls.

A collaborative research group led by Professor Gyoujin Choand Professor Inki Kim of Department of Biophysics at Sungkyunkwan University, in partnership with Professor Junsuk Rho of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at POSTECH, has developed a fully automated roll-to-roll manufacturing platform capable of producing large-area visible metalenses at a rate of 300 units per second, marking a major breakthrough in translating metasurface technology from the laboratory to real-world industrial deployment.

Hydrogels are appealing for electrolyte of soft energy storage devices due to their mechanical flexibility and high ionic conductivity. Their polymeric networks containing large amount of water result in mechanical flexibility suitable for soft devices. However, high water content in hydrogels results in insufficient mechanical strength and freezing at sub-zero temperatures. Herein, we developed anti-freezing hydrogels with high mechanical strength by liquid metal (LM)-initiated free-radical polymerization. During the polymerization, we introduced stearyl methacrylate (SMA) to form hydrophobic associations, increasing the physical cross-linking density within the polymer network, resulting in desirable mechanical properties (elongation at break of 907% and tensile strength of 766 kPa). The hydrogel exhibiting ionic conductivity of 4.35 S m⁻¹ at 25 °C after immersing in LiCl solution showed the slightly decreased ionic conductivity (3.39 S m⁻¹) and almost maintained mechanical stretchability (elongation at break of 897%) after being stored at − 20 °C for 12 h. Supercapacitors consisted of the hydrogel electrolyte and activated carbon electrodes achieved a high areal capacitance (93.52 mF cm⁻²) due to rapid ionic mobility through the hydrogel electrolyte and retained 98% of its capacitance after 45,000 charge–discharge cycles due to enhanced polymeric network of electrolyte via LM particles-initiated polymerization and SMA-induced hydrophobic association.

CU Boulder engineers found that staple-shaped particles can tangle together to form materials that are both strong and tough, yet can quickly come apart when shaken or vibrated. This approach could lead to new materials for buildings, robotics and manufacturing that are durable, adaptable and easy to disassemble or recycle.

 

As climate change intensifies heatwaves around the world, soils are increasingly exposed to repeated drying and rewetting cycles that can mobilize toxic contaminants. A new study shows that a specially engineered biochar material can keep mercury locked safely in soil even under these stressful environmental conditions.