Magnetism

An exotic state of matter originally hypothesized almost 50 years ago has been observed for the first time. Created by Harvard researchers, this material called quantum spin liquid could eventually help improve quantum computers.

Currently, most powered prosthetic limbs are controlled by electrodes in the user's residual stump. An experimental new MIT system, however, is claimed to work better by replacing those electrodes with implanted magnetic beads.

When it comes to contraceptives, men typically have to remember to use a condom, or get a difficult-to-reverse vasectomy. There may soon be a new option, however, in the form of injected particles that are magnetically guided to the testes.

German company Mahle says its new magnet-free, inductively-powered electric motor will be cheap, zero-maintenance and highly efficient across a broad range of operating conditions – without using any rare-earth metals at all.

Geologists have pieced together an uncertain part of Earth’s ancient history. A team in Australia has found new evidence that suggests the cycle of supercontinents forming and breaking up only started about two billion years ago.

Graphene has a lot of useful properties, but magnetism isn’t usually one of them. Now, researchers have managed to induce an “artificial magnetic texture” in graphene, which could have major implications for the emerging field of spintronics.

Although various groups are working on nanoparticles that could be used for directed drug delivery via the bloodstream, most of those particles are made to "go with the flow." Now, however, researchers have created ones that can travel upstream.

Researchers at the University of Tokyo have made magnetic tape using a new material, which allows higher storage density and more protection against interference, as well as a new way to write to the tape using high frequency millimeter waves.

Scientists at the University of Utah have come up with a relatively low-tech solution for air quality monitoring, demonstrating how the buildup of magnetic particles on tree leaves can be used to gauge the quality of the surrounding air.

Astronomers have detected the strongest magnetic field ever observed in the universe. Studying X-ray signals from a neutron star, the team calculated that its magnetic field is tens of millions of times stronger than any created in a lab on Earth.

Researchers have for the first time managed to use electricity to switch on magnetism in a material that’s normally non-magnetic. This could be a step towards making electronic components out of common materials that might not otherwise be suitable.

When it comes to the treatment of neurological conditions, doctors are increasingly looking to battery-powered implants that stimulate parts of the brain. Now, however, scientists have developed one that's externally powered by magnetic fields.