Empa researchers from the nanotech@surfaces laboratory have experimentally recreated another fundamental theoretical model from quantum physics, which goes back to the Nobel Prize laureate Werner Heisenberg. The basis for the successful experiment was a kind of “quantum Lego” made of tiny carbon molecules known as nanographenes. This synthetic bottom-up approach enables versatile experimental research into quantum technologies, which could one day help drive breakthroughs in the field.

With artificial photosynthesis, mankind could utilise solar energy to bind carbon dioxide and produce hydrogen. Chemists from Würzburg and Seoul have taken this one step further: They have synthesised a stack of dyes that comes very close to the photosynthetic apparatus of plants. It absorbs light energy, uses it to separate charge carriers and transfers them quickly and efficiently in the stack. The results are published in the journal Nature Chemistry.

This study, published in Earth and Planetary Physics, explores the subduction thermal state, slab metamorphism, and seismic activity in the Makran Subduction Zone. Using 3-D thermal modeling, the research examines the thermal structure of the subducting slab, the resulting metamorphic processes, and their relationship to earthquake generation. The findings provide crucial insights into the dynamics of subduction zones, with significant implications for understanding seismic hazards in the region.

A study elucidating the seismogenic structures of the Ms 6.2 Jishishan earthquake that struck China on December 18, 2023, has recently been published in Earth and Planetary Physics. The research employed relocation, focal mechanism solutions, and rupture process inversion to characterize the causative faults and rupture dynamics of this seismic event.