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Is there only one optimal configuration an organism can reach during evolution? Is there a single formula that describes the trajectory towards the optimum? And can we 'derive' it in a purely theoretical fashion? A team of researchers, including from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA), has answers.

A kind of 'umbilical cord' between different quantum states can be found in some materials. Researchers at TU Wien have now shown that this 'umbilical cord' is generic to many materials. It is a basic principle of quantum theory: sometimes certain physical quantities can only assume very specific values; all the values in between are simply not permitted by physics.

Quantum simulators are a completely new tool for research: quantum physics is studied by other kinds of quantum physics. Research teams from Innsbruck and Vienna are developing a new method that will allow this new technology to be reliably verified. Quantum physics is a very diverse field: it describes particle collisions shortly after the Big Bang as well as electrons in solid materials or atoms far out in space.

Quantum simulators are a completely new tool for research: quantum physics is studied by other kinds of quantum physics. Research teams from Innsbruck and Vienna are developing a new method that will allow this new technology to be reliably verified. Quantum physics is a very diverse field: it describes particle collisions shortly after the Big Bang as well as electrons in solid materials or atoms far out in space.

A team led by Francesca Ferlaino has set a new milestone in atomic physics by trapping individual erbium atoms in optical tweezers for the first time. Taking advantage of erbium's complex electronic structure, which opens up new degrees of freedom and possibilities, this advancement opens the door to a range of innovative experiments in quantum science.

When you place metal nanoparticles on carbon, they become much more active. What was previously only assumed based on experience could now be explained in detail for the first time at TU Wien (Vienna).

Nonlinguistic Sounds Activate Language-Related Networks in the Brain A team of researchers, including psycholinguist Jutta Mueller from the University of Vienna, has discovered that newborns are capable of learning complex sound sequences that follow language-like rules. This groundbreaking study provides long-sought evidence that the ability to perceive dependencies between non-adjacent acoustic signals is innate.

In certain materials, electrical charge can only move in very specific directions. Researchers at TU Wien (Vienna) have now shown that this can be explained by magnetic effects. High-temperature superconductivity is one of the great mysteries of modern physics: some materials conduct electrical current without any resistance - but only at very low temperatures.

The emergence of quantum entanglement is one of the fastest processes in nature. Scientists at TU Wien (Vienna) show that using special tricks, this can be investigated on an attosecond scale. Quantum theory describes events that take place on extremely short time scales. In the past, such events were regarded as 'momentary' or 'instantaneous': An electron orbits the nucleus of an atom - in the next moment it is suddenly ripped out by a flash of light.

How long do neutrons live? Different measurement results contradict each other. A possible explanation has now been proposed at TU Wien (Vienna). Neutrons are among the basic building blocks of matter. As long as they are part of a stable atomic nucleus, they can stay there for arbitrary periods of time.

The safe storage of hydrogen continues to pose a technical and scientific challenge. A research team at the Chair of Chemistry of Plastics at the University of Leoben has developed an innovative method for the chemical storage of hydrogen, which could be used in the future, particularly in the field of mobility and in decentralized hydrogen supply.

An international research team has achieved a breakthrough in atomically thin antiferromagnetic tunnel junctions. This shows the great potential of antiferromagnetic materials for storage technology. Spintronics (spin electronics) deals with the use of electron spin in electronic devices. In contrast to conventional electronics, which only uses the charge of the electrons, spintronics also uses the spin of the electrons, i.e. a "direction of rotation" at the atomic level, to store and process information.

Integrating post-quantum security algorithms into hardware was previously considered a challenge. A research team at Graz University of Technology has developed standardized hardware with additional security measures. They are not yet a reality, but in the not too distant future, sophisticated, powerful quantum computers will be available.

Spin waves with short wavelengths make magnonic computer components possible A new study by the University of Vienna, the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart and the Helmholtz Centres in Berlin and Dresden represents an important step towards further miniaturizing computer components and making them more energy-efficient.

Abstract algebra and algebraic geometry to connect quantum physics with number theory Several fields of mathematics have developed in total isolation, using their own 'undecipherable' coded languages. In a new study published in PNAS , Tamás Hausel, professor of mathematics at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA), presents "big algebras," a two-way mathematical 'dictionary' between symmetry, algebra, and geometry, that could strengthen the connection between the distant worlds of quantum physics and number theory.

Atomic clocks have been used for decades - but now, even greater precision has become possible: TU Wien (Vienna) and JILA/NIST are presenting the world's first nuclear clock. For many years, scientists all'around the world have been working towards this goal, now suddenly things are happening very fast: it was only in April that a team led by Prof Thorsten Schumm (TU Wien, Vienna) announced a major success.

Batteries undercut their theoretical capacity in practice, sometimes significantly. In a lithium iron phosphate cathode, researchers at TU Graz have now been able to observe exactly where the capacity loss occurs. Lithium iron phosphate is one of the most important materials for batteries in electric cars, stationary energy storage systems and tools.

The nuclear pore basket is a filamentous structure attached to the nucleoplasmic side of the nuclear pore complex (NPC), crucial for regulating transport between the nucleus and cytoplasm. In a paper published in Nature Cell Biology, Edvinas Stankunas and Alwin Köhler revealed the structural basis of the basket filaments and their docking mechanism to the main body of the NPC.

ISTA researchers uncover how 'mortal filaments' self-assemble and maintain order A previously unknown mechanism of active matter self-organization essential for bacterial cell division follows the motto 'dying to align': Misaligned filaments 'die' spontaneously to form a ring structure at the center of the dividing cell.

A research team led by MedUni Vienna has shown in a study that purely optical measurements of the viscosity of blood plasma may provide information about the severity and progression of COVID-19. The employed technique, Brillouin light scattering spectroscopy, can analyse the smallest amounts of plasma in less than a second, making it a promising method for monitoring severely ill patients.