Physics and Astronomy News Archive: October 2003

Image: JPL Researchers Unveil Superconductor-Based Light Detector

JPL Researchers Unveil Superconductor-Based Light Detector

Source: NASA/JPL   Posted: 10/26/03

A new and improved way to measure light has been unveiled by physicists at NASA’s JPL.The technology exploits the strange but predictable characteristics of superconductivity, and has a number of properties that should lead to uses in a variety of fields, from medicine to astrophysics.
Image: The 2003 Nobel Prize in Physics

The 2003 Nobel Prize in Physics

Source: Nobel   Posted: 10/22/03

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Physics for 2003 "for pioneering contributions to the theory of superconductors and superfluids" jointly to three scientists, Abriskosov, Ginzburg and Leggett.
Image: New hybrid material has potential use in microelectronics

New hybrid material has potential use in microelectronics

Source: UToronto   Posted: 10/22/03

U of T scientists have developed a new class of hybrid materials combining organic and inorganic elements that could lead to improved computer chips, among other applications.
Image: Nuna II breaks all records in the World Solar Challenge!

Nuna II breaks all records in the World Solar Challenge!

Source: ESA   Posted: 10/22/03

The Dutch solar car Nuna II, using ESA space technology, finished first in the World Solar Challenge, a 3010 km race right across Australia for cars powered by solar energy.
Image: Researchers Find That Superman’s Teeth Can Superconduct

Researchers Find That Superman’s Teeth Can Superconduct

Source: UWarwick   Posted: 10/14/03

Researchers at the University of Warwick have found that phosphorus, an element commonly found in teeth, can act as a “superconductor” – but you would have to have the strength of Superman to clench your teeth hard enough for it to work.
Image: Saturn-Bound Spacecraft Tests Einstein's Theory

Saturn-Bound Spacecraft Tests Einstein's Theory

Source: NASA/JPL   Posted: 10/13/03

An experiment by Italian scientists using data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft, currently en route to Saturn, confirms Einstein's theory of general relativity with a precision that is 50 times greater than previous measurements.
Image: For quantum confinement, size matters, but so does shape

For quantum confinement, size matters, but so does shape

Source: WUSTL   Posted: 10/13/03

Size matters, but so does shape, at least in the world of semiconducting nanocrystals, report chemists at Washington University in St. Louis. Their findings, published in the August 2003 issue of Nature Materials, demonstrate experimentally that the shape of a semiconductor nanocrystal can affect its electronic and optical properties.
Image: NASA research propels development of new glass

NASA research propels development of new glass

Source: NASA/MSFC   Posted: 10/8/03

There's a new glass in town. The glass, developed with the help of a unique NASA levitator facility, is available for numerous commercial applications including lasers and optical communications.
Image: World's biggest gamma radiation telescope begins operation

World's biggest gamma radiation telescope begins operation

Source: INFN   Posted: 10/7/03

On October 10th the Magic Telescope (Major Atmospheric Gamma Imaging Cherenkov telescope) will be inaugurated. With his 17-meter-diameter-mirror and 240 square meters surface, it’s the largest telescope in the world dedicated to ‘gamma astronomy’, that is devoted to the detection of gamma rays.