News from Science China Press

Hydrogen in solids may not always need to climb over energy barriers in the classical manner. A new study published in Science Bulletin reveals that in LaH₃, hydrogen can traverse barriers via quantum tunneling, with crossover temperatures reaching liquid-nitrogen conditions for concerted migration and near room temperature for single-ion migration. The findings suggest that nuclear quantum effects are not merely a minor correction, but rather a central component of hydrogen transport in materials.

A recent study probes fractional quantum Hall states in GaAs quantum wells using a cryogen-free nuclear adiabatic demagnetization refrigerator. The researchers devised an innovative polar representation to organize all odd-denominator states into a pattern. Experimental data is analyzed using the composite fermion and hierarchy theories with a more natural description achieved by the former. This work provides essential insights into strongly correlated electrons and could serve as a powerful empirical framework in the endeavor of searching for new fractionalized states.