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A new method combines helium droplets with ultrashort laser pulses to initiate chemical processes in a controlled manner. This provides insights into the transfer of energy and charge during the formation of chemical bonds. For the first time, a research team led by Markus Koch from the Institute of Experimental Physics at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) has tracked in real time how individual atoms combine to form a cluster and which processes are involved.

ISTA scientists formalize how amorphous solids learn nontrivial behaviors Can we understand and predict how complex systems learn? Modeling learning in a theoretical framework in disordered solids, researchers at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) make surprising findings reminiscent of a Star Trek philosophy.

Quantum effects are often used today for extremely precise measurements. But where is the absolute limit of accuracy? Results from TU Wien and collaborators show that it is better than expected. How can the strange properties of quantum particles be exploited to perform extremely accurate measurements? This question is at the heart of the research field of quantum metrology.

One of the current hot research topics is the combination of two of the most recent technological breakthroughs: machine learning and quantum computing. An experimental study shows that already small-scale quantum computers can boost the performance of machine learning algorithms. This was demonstrated on a photonic quantum processor by an international team of researchers of the University of Vienna.

In a collaboration between TU Wien and FU Berlin, researchers have measured what happens when quantum physical information is lost. This clarifies important connections between thermodynamics, information theory and quantum physics. Heat and information - these are two very different concepts that, at first glance, appear to have nothing to do with each other.

An international team led by Innsbruck quantum physicist Peter Zoller, together with the US company QuEra Computing, has directly observed a gauge field theory similar to models from particle physics in a two-dimensional analog quantum simulator for the first time. The study, published in Nature, opens up new possibilities for research into fundamental physical phenomena.

After years of research into the magnetic dipole moment of muons, theory and experiment have finally been compared with precision - with excellent agreement. One of the major cracks in modern physics may now have been closed: for years, scientists puzzled over why the measured values for the magnetic moment of muons did not match the calculations derived from the generally accepted Standard Model of particle physics.

An innovative combination of methods enables the precise localization of individual atoms in ultrathin materials. A research team from the University of Vienna and TU Wien has successfully embedded individual platinum atoms into an ultrathin material and, for the first time, pinpointed their positions within the lattice with atomic precision.

Scientists led by Hanns-Christoph Nägerl have observed anyons - quasiparticles that differ from the familiar fermions and bosons - in a one-dimensional quantum system for the first time. The results, published in Nature , may contribute to a better understanding of quantum matter and its potential applications.

New insights show universal applicability of carbyne as a sensor For the design of future materials, it is important to understand how the individual atoms inside a material interact with each other quantum mechanically. Previously inexplicable vibrational states between carbon chains (carbyne) and nanotubes have puzzled materials scientists.

Quantum processors: Influencing the trace of 'missing electrons' in spin qubits Amid the race to develop and market practical quantum computers, researchers from the Katsaros group at ISTA pay particular attention to the intriguing physics of special qubits generated in the semiconductor germanium. By harnessing the response of these so-called "hole spin qubits" to magnetic and electric fields, they answer fundamental questions about the physics that could help advance quantum processors.

ISTA scientists present new microscopy method to reconstruct mammalian brain tissue Our brain is a complex organ. Billions of nerve cells are wired in an intricate network, constantly processing signals, enabling us to recall memories or to move our bodies. Making sense of this complicated network requires a precise look into how these nerve cells are arranged and connected.

New property of graphene revealed by ultra-clean airless measurement Environment Graphene is a "miracle material": mechanically extremely strong and electrically highly conductive, ideal for related applications. Using a worldwide unique method physicists at the University of Vienna led by Jani Kotakoski have for the first time made graphene drastically more stretchable by rippling it like an accordion.

A technical trick has been used to simulate a speed of light of only 2 m/s in the laboratory. This made it possible to reproduce the relativistic Terrell-Penrose effect for the first time. When an object moves extremely fast - close to the speed of light - certain basic assumptions that we take for granted no longer apply.

Bizarre quantum phenomenon more common than anticipated, ISTA physicists show A surprising quantum phenomenon that goes against the universe's drive for increased chaos might not be all too exotic after all. So far, quantum many-body scars were thought to exist only under specific experimental conditions.

An international team led by Fabian Garmroudi has succeeded in producing new, efficient thermoelectric materials that could compete with state-of-the-art materials, offering greater stability and lower cost. Thermoelectric materials enable the direct conversion of heat into electrical energy. This makes them particularly attractive for the emerging "Internet of Things", for example for the autonomous energy supply of microsensors and other tiny electronic components.

Together with the company BRAVE Analytics, researchers at TU Graz have developed a method for detecting nanoplastics in liquids and determining their composition. Microplastics and the much smaller nanoplastics enter the human body in various ways, for example through food or the air we breathe. A large proportion is excreted, but a certain amount remains in organs, blood and other body fluids.

Quantum states can only be prepared and observed under highly controlled conditions. A research team from Innsbruck, Austria, has now succeeded in creating so-called hot Schrödinger cat states in a superconducting microwave resonator. The study, recently published in Science Advances , shows that quantum phenomena can also be observed and used in less perfect, warmer conditions.

Research into elementary particles and their interactions is of central importance for our understanding of the universe. A team from the Universities of Innsbruck and Waterloo shows how a new type of quantum computer opens a door into the world of particle physics. The standard model of particle physics provides the best description to date of the forces and particles that make up our world.

Using machine learning workflows developed in-house, the researchers were able to establish that heat conduction is much more intricate than previously thought. Findings offer potential for developing specific materials. Complex materials such as organic semiconductors or the microporous metal-organic frameworks known as MOFs are already being used for numerous applications such as OLED displays, solar cells, gas storage and water extraction.