The second PRX Perspective paints an exciting picture of the emerging research landscape of altermagnetism in the century-old field of magnetism.

A fluid dynamics theory that violates causality would always generate paradoxical instabilities—a result that could guide the search for a theory for relativistic fluids.

In a model of quantum spins, the identification of phase transitions triggered by differing measurement rates provides new insight into the scrambling of quantum information in systems with symmetry.

A new exchange-correlation energy functional approximation—key for density-functional theory predictions of atomic-scale properties—proves highly accurate for a broad range of problems.

A new theoretical study unravels the dynamic properties of a vison—the elementary excitation of an emergent gauge field—and may help detect them in real materials.

Optical spectroscopy reveals that a unique switchable spontaneous electric polarization in a type of transition-metal dichalcogenide arises from an asymmetric interlayer coupling.

Short-lived elastic regions in colloidal supercooled liquids under shear flow provide the mechanism for nonlinear viscoelasticity in these fluids, shedding light on more general flow behavior of soft condensed matter.

A new theory of neural population dynamics incorporates biophysical nonlinearities not included in other models, bridging the gap between the complex biophysics of single neurons and simplified population-level models.

A new method for initializing an electron spin qubit in its low-energy state achieves a 20-fold reduction in preparation error by using a digital “Maxwell’s demon” to effectively cool the electron far below its initial temperature.

Improved fabrication methods for qubits made from erbium-doped silicon waveguides give these qubits the key prerequisites for becoming a contender for future quantum computers.

The derivative expansion is a key organizational principle of relativistic hydrodynamics. A collective excitation lurking in the high-order terms of this expansion offers a new conceptual approach to exploring this subject.

A formulation for heat conduction discusses how particle- and wavelike thermal transport mechanisms can emerge and coexist and provides a criterion to assess their relative strength and the crossover where one or the other dominates.

Thermodynamic phases governed by the strong nuclear force have been linked together using multiple theoretical tools.

Josephson diodes, in which current flows with no resistance in one direction but normally in the other, come in two types based on whether a voltage or a current realizes this unique diode effect.

A new quantum random-access memory device reads and writes information using a chirped electromagnetic pulse and a superconducting resonator, making it significantly more hardware-efficient than previous devices.

Tuning a moiré heterostructure across quantum phase transitions unveils a rich and exotic quantum phase diagram controlled by electric and magnetic fields.

A new type of plasma accelerator combines two previous methods of producing an electron beam into one compact design.

Cancerous human fibrosarcoma cells undergo collective migration at the edge of their colony by combining mesoscale self-organization and intrinsic handedness, showing how physical interactions alone can lead to biological functionality.

A new approach to solving physics problems described by high-dimensional integrals or sums avoids catastrophic issues that arise when doing so with commonly used Monto Carlo techniques.

Experiments show that a frequency comb can be generated by just one resonantly driven nanomechanical mode, rather than two or more, opening a new route to comb generation and novel technological applications.

Spin-momentum coupling in unconventional superconductors drastically alters the structure of fluxons, suggesting a path to manipulating these quanta of magnetic flux.

The introduction of two interactions—one induced by polymers, the other by an electric field—to a colloidal system provides fine control over its phase transitions and tunable control over transformation kinetics.

A new approach to a classical optimization procedure that is able to overcome noise in quantum computers offers superior performance, paving the way for practical, near-term quantum advantage.

Researchers demonstrate a loss-tolerant method for so-called quantum steering, a phenomenon that could give quantum communication networks complete security.

A competition observed between antiferro- and ferromagnetic phases in Na${}_3$Co${}_2$SbO${}_6$ agrees with a theory that predicts not only such phases but also a quantum spin liquid state, providing insight into how to realize this elusive phase.

Persistent internally synchronized states in a prototypical nonlinear micromechanical resonator are key to understanding the system’s motion and energy flow, a useful insight for engineering nonlinear systems.

Analysis of the occurrence and timing of a few key, visible transitions between states in physical systems reveals thermodynamic properties otherwise hidden from direct measurement.

Turbulent dynamos efficiently generate folded magnetic fields that, at small plasma resistivity and viscosity, are disrupted by resistive tearing and plasmoid formation.

Novel simulations of supercooled liquids near the glass transition temperature elucidate the nature of molecular dynamics taking place over long times, allowing for a reassessment of our understanding of the glass transition itself.

A new, simple model unifies seemingly distinct approaches to quantum spin liquids, suggesting new routes for physically realizing these exotic states of matter.

Researchers control the rotation of a periodic array of magnetic quasiparticles by illuminating the system with a series of precisely timed polarized laser pulses.

For a long time, researchers assumed that phonons could not contribute to the so-called thermal Hall effect because of their lack of charge and spin. New work challenges this assumption.

Experiments demonstrate that the effective fermionization of a weakly interacting Bose gas enables 1D physics to extend far beyond conventional limits.

Active forces acting on a cell’s genome and interacting through the nucleoplasmic fluid play a key role in the segregation of the genome into transcriptionally active and inactive compartments.

A 3D crystal of superatoms is the first known antipolar metal and possesses the first polar metallic state hosted in superatomic units, opening a category of quantum materials with versatile layered nanostructures.

A hybrid quantum-classical algorithm for studying topologically ordered quantum matter on a trapped-ion quantum simulator offers a powerful tool for studying this sought-after state.

A new approach to the generation and control of extreme ultraviolet light handles both aspects in a single chip-scale device, circumventing the need for bulky equipment when, traditionally, generation and control are separated.

Experiments in atomic Fermi superfluids demonstrate fast and on-demand generation of persistent ring currents, opening a new platform for quantum technology applications.

A new method for determining the ratios and interaction strengths among compounds that form biomolecular condensates relies on measurements of just one solute in one phase.