An atomic wire connected to two reservoirs—a setup used in ultracold 1D conductance measurements—is augmented by a synthetic dimension upon shaking, providing a novel platform to explore 2D quantum phenomena and topological transport.

Electrocaloric cooling could permit faster and smaller cooling devices. New data-driven calculations show that appropriate voltage control permits this type of cooling to be encouragingly efficient.

New highly sensitive detectors can read the state of a single-spin qubit in microseconds with 97% accuracy, providing a realistic path toward robust error correction in silicon-based quantum computation.

Velocity circulation around closed loops in turbulent fluids can be described with just two exponents, setting the stage for a simpler statistical theory of turbulence.

New experiments provide the first direct observation of a single quantum of vibrational energy—a phonon—at ambient conditions, relying on techniques that offer a new approach to study quantum vibrational effects in molecules and bulk materials.

A new approach to nonequilibrium quantum dynamics succeeds in tackling the nonperturbative regime of a many-body problem.

A new detector to measure correlations in many-body quantum states protects those states from imperfections in the detector, an essential ingredient for fault-tolerant quantum computation.

Phonons might give rise to surprising superconductive and insulating states recently discovered in twisted bilayer graphene, according to new detailed calculations.

Knowing how and why quantum systems thermalize is essential for developing quantum technologies. A new numerical technique and proposed experiment could fully explore the thermal and integrable regimes in classical and quantum systems.

Theory suggests that high-rate quantum networks with untrusted relays can be built in which users can be added or deleted in real time.

Experiments confirm that a new quantum simulator outperforms all classical counterparts in simulating a stochastic process with a smaller memory storage than classically possible.

A small homogenous bath of cold atoms can destroy many-body localization in a coupled ensemble, a new experimental insight into how some quantum systems fail to thermalize.

Researchers have developed a general theory of symmetry and topology in open systems.

A tabletop setup for imaging antiferromagnetic order shows how electron spin domains in a thin film of NiO respond to an external electric current, a useful insight for building fast computer memories.

A mathematical analysis fully quantifies a leading hypothesis for how quantum systems achieve thermal equilibrium despite being fully reversible.

Calculations show that oxygen could have entered Earth’s iron-nickel core shortly after our planet’s formation, which would have influenced the dynamics of the core and, in turn, Earth’s magnetic field.

Polaritons—comprised of photons and electric dipoles—can respond to electric and magnetic fields much like charged particles, suggesting a way to control the motion of these quasiparticles within a material.

An unusual mechanical behavior in the nuclei of mouse stem cells may be linked to the compaction of chromatin (DNA and the proteins that bind to it), a step toward understanding how and why stem cells become other cell types.

An experimental demonstration of the complete characterization and control of a prethermal quantum gas sets the stage for new ways of studying nonequilibrium quantum systems.

Experiments reveal a novel optomechanical instability in devices that attempt to surpass quantum limits in ultraprecise displacement measurements, an effect that must be considered in future quantum sensing experiments.

A new paradigm for performing machine learning tasks on a quantum processor offers a potential boost to sensing applications using readily available quantum devices and components.

A new minimal model explores how individual creatures in a fish school or bird flock benefit from different arrangements of the group, revealing the configurations that provide the greatest hydrodynamic benefits.

The liquid layer that forms between ice and any object gliding along its surface is far thinner and more viscous than imagined, setting the stage for new ways of thinking about why ice is so slippery.

An analysis of liquids driven far from equilibrium by external fields or internal activity draws explicit constraints between their dissipation, structure, and dynamics, enabling finer control of spatial organization.

An investigation of the material $\beta$-Ga${}_2$O${}_3$ reveal defects in the crystalline structure that correlate with theoretical structures predicted to alter the material’s electrical properties, a key step in harnessing such defects for technological development.

Observations provide the full 3D distribution of momentums of helium atoms in a Mott insulator, an insulating phase of strongly interacting quantum matter, and lead to several new insights into the behavior of this exotic phase.

A new protocol sorts and classifies quantum data by the state in which they were prepared, outperforming a comparable classical algorithm.

Experiments directly reveal the real-time dynamics of the modulation instability process in resonators.

Quantum error correcting “surface codes” can be tailored to the specific noise characteristics of the system, promising substantial gains in future quantum computing implementations.

Asymmetric obstacles in active matter can act as novel type of engine. A new analysis reveals the optimal obstacle shape for such devices and benchmarks for the extraction of useful work from these systems.

An experimental realization of long-distance quantum entanglement between an atomic memory and a telecom photon provides a key step toward practical quantum communication.

A theoretical analysis identifies mechanical waveguide modes most responsible for heating atoms in nanophotonic cold-atom traps, which could lead to vastly improved atomic control in the next generation of devices.

Proteins balance contradictory demands of folding tightly yet remaining flexible by tuning where they operate in a temperature-pressure-crowding phase diagram.

Magnetization precession in ferromagnetic media remains coherent at remarkably high precession angles, an important insight for reliable control of nanomagnetic devices.

A realistic model of a 2D quantum magnet may exhibit a deconfined quantum critical point—a long-sought type of phase transition—that could present itself as a unique signature in phonon and magnon spectra.

A topological insulator with magnetic elements shows surprising conductive behavior on its surface, presenting either a hurdle to realizing exotic quantum phenomena or a boon to devices with new charge transport mechanisms.

Investigations of two magnetic topological insulators reveal details about what causes their novel surface insulating behavior.

New experiments confirm the topological nature of MnBi${}_2$Te${}_4$, the first proposed intrinsic magnetic topological insulator.

A decade-old alternative to the leading superconducting qubit exhibits the coherence times needed for applications.

Photons entangled in high dimensions are more resilient to noise, making them ideal for quantum communication applications.

The stress left behind in a system after a frictional rupture depends not only on the physics of the interface between interacting bodies but also, as a new theory shows, on the deformation of those bodies.

Magnetically heated nanoparticles can offer targeted tumor therapy. A new analysis explores how defects in iron-oxide nanocrystals can be used to tailor their relevant magnetic properties.

Temperature-dependent atomic bond formation plays a dominant role in the generation of friction between nanoscale silica structures and an adjacent wafer, according to new experiments and simulations.

The state of complex systems such as power grids often masks external influences, a new analysis shows, but optimal sensor placement can reveal those inputs, leading to more robust system design.

A new theoretical framework for active nematic fluids describes how topological defects move about within the material, predicting that under certain conditions the defects will organize themselves into a flock.

Dark excitons, electron-hole pairs with forbidden optical transitions, emit a significant amount of light in carbon nanotubes and can be controlled via surface interactions, effects that could be leveraged for novel optoelectronic devices.

Experiments reveal changes in the electronic state of the iron-based superconductor FeSe during the emergence of nematicity, a fourfold rotational symmetry breaking that arises close to the onset of superconductivity.

A technique for removing image distortion induced by light traversing a bent optical fiber could pave the way to obtaining microscopic images deep within the human body.

Thermal conductivity measurements of a quantum spin-liquid candidate show—in contrast to earlier work—no evidence that spinons contribute to heat transport, instead attributing heat conduction to phonons scattered by spin excitations.

An optical clock based on an array of individually trapped atoms provides a new twist in atom-based timekeeping.

A new implementation of quantum error-correcting “cat codes” could be extended to a fully tolerant, universal quantum computer with minimal hardware overhead.

A new paradigm for material self-assembly uses DNA sequences in solution to encode instructions for assembling colloids into complex structures.

Two well-studied electronic phases in the actinide compound UNiSn correspond to two well-known topological phases, an insight that provides a new link between correlated systems and topological materials.

It is possible to accurately recover the past of an evolving complex network by running a model of its evolution backward, a remarkable possibility since there are usually intractably many possible pasts compatible with an observed network.

A theory for rogue waves based on instantons—a mathematical concept developed in quantum chromodynamics—has been successfully tested in controlled laboratory experiments.

The twisted topology of a Möbius strip leads to unique mechanical properties that could aid in the design of structures with elastic memory.

The paramagnetic state of MnSi shows signatures of topological complexity that mark preexisting conditions of the emergence of skyrmions—magnetic vortices whose stability makes them ideal for novel information processing.

Overtones in the gravitational ringdown following a merger of two black holes can provide a precise estimate of the final black hole mass and spin as well as test the famed no-hair theorem using current detectors.

Experiments reveal that disorder in the semimetal Co${}_3$Sn${}_2$S${}_2$ boosts the strength of the anomalous Nernst effect, where a thermal gradient in a magnetic material induces a voltage perpendicular to both.

In contrast to conventional metals, so-called strange metals lack well-defined plasmons, exhibiting instead a featureless continuum that is a key test of theories aimed at describing this phase of matter.

Magnetic skyrmions, whirls of magnetization in some materials, have quantum properties quite different from all other quantum particles.

A new analysis demonstrates that discrete-modulated CV QKD, a quantum key establishment protocol, can become a cost-effective tool for securing current classical and future quantum networks over long distances.

For the first time, experiments reveal a material with both an intrinsic net magnetization and a topological band inversion, a major advance in the search for materials with tunable topological properties.