Physics Newsletter October #1
- Bhavya Goel
- Oct 11, 2024
- 3 min read
Physics Pulse: Physics Newsletter
By: Bhavya Goel - Researcher
Manganese cathodes could boost lithium-ion batteries
Scientists from Berkeley Lab have discovered that manganese, a common and low-cost metal, could be a great alternative to expensive and limited materials like nickel and cobalt in rechargeable batteries. These batteries power things like phones, laptops, and electric cars.
The team found a way to use manganese in a special kind of battery material called disordered rock salts (DRX). Before, making DRX materials required a lot of energy and had to be ground into super tiny particles, but the new method allows the particles to be much bigger—about 1,000 times larger—without losing performance.
They also created a faster, two-day process to make the material, compared to the old process that took over three weeks! Using advanced microscopes, they discovered that their method creates a special structure that helps the battery work better and store more energy.
This breakthrough means that future batteries could be made more cheaply and with more common materials, making technology more sustainable!
Physicists explore the possibility of life beyond earth.
Scientists from the University of Texas at Arlington are studying F-type stars to see if planets around them could support life. These stars are bigger and hotter than our sun, with surface temperatures over 10,000 degrees, and they have a special area called the habitable zone (HZ) where water might exist on orbiting planets—an important factor for life.
Although F-type stars have shorter lifespans than our sun, their wider HZs make them interesting for exolife research (the study of life beyond Earth). The researchers, led by Shaan Patel, examined 206 systems with F-type stars and found that some planets spend time in the HZ. One planet, HD 111998 (38 Virginia), is always in the HZ. While this planet itself might not support life, its moons might be good candidates, which is a hot topic in astrobiology!
This research is paving the way for future studies on Earth-like planets and exomoons in F-type systems, thanks to data collected from over 5,000 known planets discovered in the last 30 years. So, while we don't have a definitive answer yet, these findings offer hope for life beyond Earth!
Astronomers spotted uniquely inflated and asymmetric planets.
Astronomers from the University of Arizona, using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, have made an exciting discovery about an unusual exoplanet called WASP-107b. This planet is about the size of Jupiter but has only a tenth of its mass, making its atmosphere "puffed up" compared to others. What makes it even more interesting is that the team observed an east-west asymmetry in its atmosphere, meaning that the atmosphere is different on one side compared to the other.
The planet is tidally locked, which means one side always faces its star (like our moon always shows the same face to Earth), creating a permanent day side and a permanent night side. The research team, led by graduate student Matthew Murphy, used a special technique called transmission spectroscopy to take detailed snapshots of the planet’s atmosphere as it passed in front of its star. This allowed them to analyse the gases, clouds, and temperature changes between the two sides of the planet.
WASP-107b is unique in its low density and temperature, around 890°F, and is unlike anything in our solar system. The new findings challenge existing models of how exoplanet atmospheres should behave, opening up exciting new questions about these distant worlds. This is the first time such atmospheric differences have been directly observed, thanks to the incredible precision of the James Webb Telescope. The researchers are planning more detailed studies to learn what drives these differences.
Scientists found evidence of ‘negative time’ :
Scientists from the University of Toronto have found evidence of "negative time" while studying photons, the particles of light. They discovered that some photons appeared to exit a material before even entering it, a strange phenomenon they didn’t expect. The team was investigating atomic excitation, where photons are delayed as they pass through a material. However, during an experiment with ultracold atoms, they noticed that some photons completed their journey before the atomic excitement process finished, giving a "negative time" result.
This discovery challenges common understandings of time. Lead researcher Aephraim Steinberg acknowledged the oddness of the finding, while Josiah Sinclair explained that this negative time effect means if we had a "quantum" clock, it could move backward in some cases. The team was completely surprised and their findings are now awaiting peer review.
References:
Astronomers spotted uniquely inflated and asymmetric planets. - https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/09/240925123642.htm
Physicists explore the possibility of life beyond earth. - https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/10/241001152949.htm?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
Astronomers spotted uniquely inflated and asymmetric planets. - https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/09/240924123003.htm?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
Scientists found evidence of ‘negative time’: https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/time-negative-quantum-physics-clock-b2621812.html
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