Latest press releases
Both quantum and classical – states from the borderland of worlds
14 February 2019
There is a reason why quantum properties seem extremely exotic: our senses simply cannot see them in the world around us. It turns out, however, that the boundary between exotic quantum reality and classical reality does not have to be as strict as it may seem. Researchers from Cracow, Poland, have shown that there can be quantum states that on one hand exhibit the most characteristic of quantum features, whilst being as close to classical states as is possible in quantum mechanics.
Electrically charged higgs versus physicists: 1-0 until break
20 December 2018
The last missing particle of the Standard Model, the Higgs boson, was discovered in 2012 in the experiments at the Large Hadron Collider. Since then, searching for new, related particles has been underway. Predicted by various theories that go beyond known physics, Higgs bosons with positive or negative electric charge are among the favorites to be observed. But do these particles really exist?
From cathedral floors to transistor circuits: The splendid generative potential of the Sierpinski triangle
13 December 2018
One transistor, just a pair of inductors and capacitors. Such a simple electronic circuit can become an oscillator with a surprising richness of behavior. However, even more interesting effects become visible if the structure of connections is fractal and shows some... imperfections. Could similar rules explain the diversity and complexity of the human brain dynamics?
When heat ceases to be a mystery, spintronics becomes more real
12 December 2018
The development of spintronics depends on materials that guarantee control over the flow of magnetically polarized currents. However, it is hard to talk about control when the details of heat transport through the interfaces between materials are unknown. This “thermal” gap in our material knowledge has just been filled thanks to the Polish-German team of physicists, who for the first time described in detail the dynamic phenomena occurring at the interface between a ferromagnetic metal and a semiconductor.
It's time for a Hyper-Crash, say multifractal analyses of the main stock market index
22 November 2018
The near future of the global economy looks extremely bleak. This pessimistic forecast comes from advanced statistical analysis of the S&P 500 stock market index, recently published by scientists from the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Cracow. Based on their analysis, the researchers explain why, in up to a dozen or so years, we can expect a financial meltdown such as never before – and explain why you have the chance to save the world by reading this text.