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Scientists at SLAC unexpectedly created gold hydride, a compound of gold and hydrogen, while studying diamond formation under extreme pressure and heat. This discovery challenges gold’s reputation as a chemically unreactive metal and opens doors to studying dense hydrogen, which could help us understand planetary interiors and fusion processes. The results also suggest that extreme […]

At the Large Hadron Collider, scientists from the University of Kansas achieved a fleeting form of modern-day alchemy — turning lead into gold for just a fraction of a second. Using ultra-peripheral collisions, where ions nearly miss but interact through powerful photon exchanges, they managed to knock protons out of nuclei, creating new, short-lived elements.

Physicists have heated gold to over 19,000 Kelvin, more than 14 times its melting point, without melting it, smashing the long-standing “entropy catastrophe” limit. Using an ultra-fast laser pulse at SLAC’s Linac Coherent Light Source, they kept the gold crystalline at extreme heat, opening new frontiers in high-energy-density physics, fusion research, and planetary science.

Scientists have found that microscopic gold clusters can act like the world’s most accurate quantum systems, while being far easier to scale up. With tunable spin properties and mass production potential, they could transform quantum computing and sensing.

Using the world’s most powerful X-ray laser, researchers have captured the hidden, never-ending vibrations of atoms inside molecules. This first-ever direct view of zero-point motion reveals that atoms move in precise, synchronized patterns, even in their lowest energy state.

ETH Zurich researchers levitated a nano glass sphere cluster with record-setting quantum purity at room temperature, avoiding costly cooling. Using optical tweezers, they isolated quantum zero-point motion, paving the way for future quantum sensors in navigation, medicine, and fundamental physics.

Astronomers have uncovered what may be the most massive black hole ever found, 36 billion times the mass of our Sun, hidden at the heart of the Cosmic Horseshoe galaxy. Located 5 billion light-years away, this ultramassive giant bends light into a perfect Einstein ring and whips nearby stars at incredible speeds.

Physicists are exploring thorium-229’s unique properties to create a nuclear clock so precise it could detect the faintest hints of dark matter. Recent measurement advances may allow scientists to spot tiny shifts in the element’s resonance spectrum, potentially revealing the nature of this mysterious substance.

A visionary plan proposes sending a paperclip-sized spacecraft, powered by Earth-based lasers, to a nearby black hole within a century. Led by astrophysicist Cosimo Bambi, the mission would test the limits of general relativity and explore the mysteries of event horizons. While current technology can t yet achieve it, advancements in nanocraft design, laser propulsion,

Chinese scientists uncovered a powerful energy source for deep Earth microbes: hydrogen and oxidants generated by rock fracturing during earthquakes. The process may also suggest how life could exist on other planets without sunlight.