In a recent breakthrough, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory and Northern Illinois University discovered that they could use light to detect the spin state in a class of materials called perovskites (specifically in this research methylammonium lead iodide, or MAPbI3). Perovskites have many potential uses, from solar panels to quantum technology.

Researchers have developed and demonstrated a technique that allows them to engineer a class of materials called layered hybrid perovskites (LHPs) down to the atomic level, which dictates precisely how the materials convert electrical charge into light. The technique opens the door to engineering materials tailored for use in next-generation printed LEDs and lasers – and holds promise for engineering other materials for use in photovoltaic devices.

A research team led by the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has devised a unique method to observe changes in materials at the atomic level. The technique opens new avenues for understanding and developing advanced materials for quantum computing and electronics.

Scientists at Princeton University, led by Bangladeshi researcher M. Zahid Hasan, have marked a significant milestone in quantum physics. This achievement, documented in the Nature Physics journal on 20 February, showcases the observation of long-range quantum coherence at relatively high temperatures. This advancement is crucial for the development of next-generation technologies, including super-fast computers and ultra-secure communication networks, which until now have been hindered by the need for extremely low temperatures to achieve this state.

Building on six successful years of quantum collaboration, the Max Planck–New York Center on Non-Equilibrium Quantum Phenomena will officially continue its work for an additional five years. The renewed funding comes from Columbia University, the Flatiron Institute, the MPSD and the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research in Mainz, Germany. The Center will also expand to include a new partner institution, Cornell University.

In the CiRQus project, we have implemented laser-controlled interactions between a highly-excited circular Rydberg qubit and a second ionic core electron. This achievement advances control of circular Rydberg atoms from the microwave to the optical domain by combining established tools for manipulating trapped ions with neutral atom arrays.

Now, a team of researchers of the Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter (MPSD) in Germany and Brookhaven National Laboratory in the United States has demonstrated a new way to study disorder in superconductors using terahertz pulses of light. Adapting methods used in nuclear magnetic resonance to terahertz spectroscopy, the team was able to follow the evolution of disorder in the transport properties up to the superconducting transition temperature for the first time.

Most atoms are made from positively charged protons, neutral neutrons and negatively charged electrons. Positronium is an exotic atom composed of a single negative electron and a positively charged antimatter positron. It is naturally very short-lived, but researchers including those from the University of Tokyo successfully cooled and slowed down samples of positronium using carefully tuned lasers. They hope this research will help others explore exotic forms of matter, and that such research might unlock the secrets of antimatter.

Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology have for the first time succeeded in combining two major research fields in photonics by creating a nanoobject with unique optical qualities. Since the object is a thousand times thinner than the human hair, yet very powerful, the breakthrough has great potential in the development of efficient and compact nonlinear optical devices.

Prof. Michał Parniak and Michał Lipka from the University of Warsaw (UW) is Faculty of Physics developed a quantum-inspired super-resolving spectrometer for short pulses of light. In the future the device can be miniaturized on a photonic chip and applied in optical and quantum networks as well as in spectroscopic studies of matter. The invention was presented by the researchers in “Optica”.