Scientific Highlights
Atmospheric globe-trotters
The CLOUD experiment reveals a new mechanism by which atmospheric particles form. The particles rapidly travel the world, globally impacting cloud formation and climate.
Light-Induced Magnetization at the Nanoscale
Targeted manipulations of an atom's magnetic moment are tricky, as the charge currents used for this process are extremely difficult to control . Now, a consortium of collaborators in Germany, Switzerland, Slovenia and Italy reports on a solution to this problem in the cover page article of Physic Review Letters 128, Vol. 15. As it appears, the magnetization of an atomic gas can be altered by high-power lasers using a patterned wave front. The method is promising for studying and manipulating the magnetic properties of matter at the nanoscale.
Spin keeps electrons in line in iron-based superconductor
Electronic nematicity, thought to be an ingredient in high temperature superconductivity, is primarily spin driven in FeSe finds a study in Nature Physics.
Mechanochromism of layered perovskites
The mechanochromism of hybrid 2D perovskites is probed at pressures compatible with practical applications
Things run smoother without lubricants
At the particle accelerators of PSI, the components have to withstand harsh conditions. This is why a special ball bearing that does not require grease as a lubricant has been in use since last year.
New SwissFEL soft X-ray endstation welcomes first users
Maloja is go. First user experiments mark a double first, not only for the Maloja endstation but also for the second beamline of SwissFEL, Athos.
Direct mechanochemical synthesis of polyoxometalates
Polyoxomolybdates have been directly synthesized from basic reagents in a mechanochemical one-pot reaction.
Deep learning to avoid weather disappointments
Saharan dust storms played havoc with weather predictions. Invertible neural networks to retrieve aerosol properties from light scattering data may help.
Low-temperature magnetic crossover in the topological kagome magnet TbMn6Sn6
Magnetic topological phases of quantum matter are an emerging frontier in physics and materials science, of which kagome magnets appear as a highly promising platform. Here, we explore magnetic correlations in the recently identified topological kagome system TbMn6Sn6 using muon spin rotation, combined with local field analysis and neutron diffraction. Our studies identify an out-of-plane ferrimagnetic structure with slow magnetic fluctuations which exhibit a critical slowing down below T*C1 ≃ 120 K and finally freeze into static patches with ideal out-of-plane order below TC1 ≃ 20 K....
In situ spectroscopy unveils the structural changes of the sites in single atom catalysts
To improve the performance of single atom catalysts (SACs), the structure of their active sites under operative conditions needs to be better understood. For this, we have performed in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy measurements using a modulation excitation approach selectively sensitive to the species involved in the electrochemical reactions. This has allowed us to study the structural changes undergone by two types of SACs, and to tie the observed differences to their catalytic activities.