Researchers have discovered a novel method to generate topological optical textures using a simple periodic photonic crystal slab. This breakthrough, published in Physical Review Letters, leverages Bound States in the Continuum (BICs) to create these textures in free momentum space without the need for precise alignment, offering a robust and scalable platform for next-generation information carriers.

In a paper published in National Science Review, Professor Yan Shi and his graduate student Shihan Dai from Xidian University, China, proposed a novel multi-target simultaneous intelligent detection approach based on space-time-coding metasurfaces and software defined radio technologies, with experimental validation across diverse liquid samples under complicated ambient conditions.

Theoretical physicist Jonathan Heckman and Ph.D. student Rebecca Hicks at University of Pennsylvania put a spin on ideas related to testing string theory: Rather than looking to verify it, the team and their collaborators sought a novel way to falsify it with data from the Large Hadron Collider at CERN. “We're not rooting for string theory to fail,” Hicks says. “We're stress-testing it, applying more pressure to see if it holds up." “If string theory survives, fantastic," Heckman says. "If it snaps, we'll learn something profound about nature.”

An interdisciplinary research team including mechanical science and engineering professor Mickey Clemon in The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is investigating cooling methods for heat sinks by performing experiments onboard a satellite currently orbiting the earth.

Researchers have developed an analytical model for Stirling engines based on an optimized Simple analysis method, significantly improving the accuracy of performance predictions. This provides optimization and analysis tools for more efficient and reliable Stirling engines, which is crucial for applications ranging from space nuclear power to terrestrial energy systems.

- University of Leicester’s science and innovation park to lead on a European Space Agency project to build a Double-Walled Isolator (DWI) to support analysis of extra-terrestrial samples

- Samples could be stored and handled and initially analysed in the DWI, to reduce the risk of cross contamination on Earth

- Work has started with funding of €5 million