What's up in

Condensed matter physics

Latest Articles

Mathematicians Tame Rogue Waves, Lighting Up Future of LEDs

August 22, 2017

The mathematician Svitlana Mayboroda and collaborators have figured out how to predict the behavior of electrons — a mathematical discovery that could have immediate practical effects.

Dark Matter Recipe Calls for One Part Superfluid

June 13, 2017

A different kind of dark matter could help to resolve an old celestial conundrum.

Q&A

‘Digital Alchemist’ Seeks Rules of Emergence

March 8, 2017

Computational physicist Sharon Glotzer is uncovering the rules by which complex collective phenomena emerge from simple building blocks.

Inside the Knotty World of ‘Anyon’ Particles

February 28, 2017

A new class of quantum particle is about to emerge from the tangled considerations of quantum statistics.

Nobel Prize Awarded for Quantum Topology

October 4, 2016

Three physicists have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for rewriting our understanding of exotic quantum states on the surfaces of materials.

The Strange Second Life of String Theory

September 15, 2016

String theory has so far failed to live up to its promise as a way to unite gravity and quantum mechanics. At the same time, it has blossomed into one of the most useful sets of tools in science.

Q&A

An Explorer of Quantum Borderlands

June 9, 2016

Suchitra Sebastian’s searches for quantum anomalies have led to the potential discovery of a new building block of matter.

The Quantum Secret to Superconductivity

February 22, 2016

In a virtuoso experiment, physicists have revealed details of a “quantum critical point” that underlies high-temperature superconductivity.

Q&A

Taming Superconductors With String Theory

January 21, 2016

The physicist Subir Sachdev borrows tools from string theory to understand the puzzling behavior of high-temperature superconductors.

Get highlights of the most important news delivered to your email inbox