Since the CMS and ATLAS experiments announced the discovery of the Higgs boson in 2012, they have been measuring its mass and interaction with other particles with ever-increasing precision. Now, researchers are setting their sights on the Higgs boson’s interaction with itself, which could provide physicists with clues to the stability of the Universe. To do this, physicists search for a much rarer phenomenon than the production of one Higgs boson: the production of Higgs boson pairs, known as di-Higgs. In a new study, using data from high-energy proton–proton collisions in Run 2 of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the CMS experiment has released its latest search for di-Higgs production and provided constraints on their production rate.

A team of researchers from the University of Cologne, Hasselt University (Belgium) and the University of St Andrews (Scotland) has succeeded in using the quantum mechanical principle of strong light-matter coupling for a groundbreaking optical technology that overcomes the long-standing problem of angular dependence in optical systems. The study ‘Breaking the angular dispersion limit in thin film optics by ultra-strong light-matter coupling’ published in Nature Communications presents ultra-stable thin-film polariton filters that open new avenues in photonics, sensor technology, optical imaging and display technology. The study at the University of Cologne was led by Professor Dr Malte Gather, director of the Humboldt Centre for Nano- and Biophotonics at the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences.

In a study published today in Nature Communications, researchers from the Quantum Magnetism group in the Department of Physics have developed an innovative approach to synthesise and study rare-earth magnetic materials. This achievement marks a significant advancement in understanding quantum magnetic states, potentially bringing the field closer to realising elusive quantum spin liquids.

Physicists at Loughborough University have made an exciting breakthrough in understanding how to fine-tune the behaviour of electrons in quantum materials poised to drive the next generation of advanced technologies.

UCF and the University of Washington (UW) were recently awarded $4.2 million for six years from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) to establish a quantum materials research and education center as part of the Partnerships for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) program.

A team at the Department of Experimental Physics and the Institute of Quantum Optics and Quantum Information (IQOQI) led by Francesca Ferlaino has successfully isolated single atoms of erbium in optical tweezer arrays. This achievement enables a groundbreaking approach to the study of elements with multiple valence electrons —a realm previously dominated by simpler atoms with one or two valence electrons. Erbium, which possesses 14 valence electrons, introduces new degrees of freedom and opens up exciting opportunities for quantum experimentation, enabling the exploration of previously uncharted atomic behaviors.

In a new paper, scientists seeking better methods for controlling the quantum interactions between light and matter demonstrated a novel way to use light to give electrons a spinning kick. They reported the results of their experiment, which shows that a light beam can reliably transfer orbital angular momentum to itinerant electrons in graphene, on Nov. 26, 2024, in the journal Nature Photonics.

An experimental setup built at the Technion Faculty of Physics demonstrates the transfer of atoms from one place to another through quantum tunneling between optical tweezers. Led by Prof. Yoav Sagi and doctoral student Yanay Florshaim from the Solid State Institute, the research was published in Science Advances.

For the first time, EPFL researchers have exclusively observed molecules participating in hydrogen bonds in liquid water, measuring electronic and nuclear quantum effects that were previously accessible only via theoretical simulations.

Emory chemist Fang Liu received $875,000 from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for her work aimed at optimizing the use of light to spark the transfer of an electron. Known as photoredox catalysis, this powerful chemical process is one of the fastest growing areas of organic synthesis, with applications spanning everything from health care to renewable energy.