condensed matter physics

Snow crystals come in two main types. The “pope” of snowflake physics has a new theory that explains why.

While studying materials made from DNA-coated nanoparticles, researchers found a new form of this matter: lattices in which smaller particles roam like electrons in metallic bonds.

A new theoretical model may help explain the shocking onset of superconductivity in stacked, twisted carbon sheets.

A new experiment confirms the existence of “superionic ice,” a bizarre form of water that might comprise the bulk of giant icy planets throughout the universe.

Mathematicians have found that materials conduct electricity when electrons follow a universal mathematical pattern.

The stunning emergence of a new type of superconductivity with the mere twist of a carbon sheet has left physicists giddy, and its discoverer nearly overwhelmed.

One of the first quantum simulators has produced a puzzling phenomenon: a row of atoms that repeatedly pops back into place.

People have known about magnets since ancient times, but the physics of ferromagnetism remains a mystery. Now a familiar puzzle is getting physicists closer to the answer.

Throughout nature, throngs of relatively simple elements can self-organize into behaviors that seem unexpectedly complex. Scientists are beginning to understand why and how these phenomena emerge without a central organizing entity.