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Graphene exhibits many extraordinary properties. But, despite many attempts to find ways to induce it, superconductivity is not one of them. First-principles calculations suggest that by decorating the surface of graphene with lithium atoms, it could yet be made to superconduct.
Rapid particle acceleration is possible using a fixed-field alternating-gradient machine—but ‘scaling’ in its design has been necessary to avoid beam blow-up and loss. The demonstration now of acceleration in such a machine without scaling has positive implications for future particle accelerators.
The presence, or otherwise, of magnetism in graphene has been the subject of much debate. A systematic study of point defects—a widely suggested source of ferromagnetism in graphene—suggests that although they can exhibit net spin, they remain paramagnetic, even at liquid helium temperature.
Polaritons—quasiparticles made up of a photon and exciton strongly coupled together—can form macroscopic quantum states even at room temperature. Now these so-called condensates are imaged directly. This achievement could aid the development of semiconductor-based polariton-condensate devices.
