Mobile-phone chargers and other devices could become much smaller after an all-RIKEN team of physicists successfully shrunk an electrical component known as an inductor to microscale dimensions using a quantum effect. …
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New quantum nanodevice can simultaneously act as a heat engine and a refrigerator
A multitasking nanomachine that can act as a heat engine and a refrigerator at the same time has been created by RIKEN engineers. The device is one of the first to test how quantum effects, which govern the behavior of particles on the smallest scale, might one day be exploited to enhance the performance of nanotechnologies. …
Simplifying long-range quantum interactions in many-body systems
Calculations for certain quantum systems whose parts interact over long distances will be much easier to perform thanks to the work of a RIKEN physicist and his collaborator, who have extended an assumption that holds for materials with short-range interactions. …
Researchers find ‘missing link’ between magnetars and rotation-powered pulsars
Researchers from the RIKEN Cluster for Pioneering Research have made observations of a new magnetar, called Swift J1818.0-1607, which challenges current knowledge about two types of extreme stars, known as magnetars and pulsars. The research, just published in the Astrophysical Journal, was done using the Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER), an X-ray instrument aboard the International Space Station. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-10-link-magnetars-rotation-powered-pulsars.html…
Face Shields Ineffective at Trapping Aerosols, Says Japanese Supercomputer
Plastic face shields are almost totally ineffective at trapping respiratory aerosols, according to modelling in Japan, casting doubt on their effectiveness in preventing the spread of coronavirus. From a report: A simulation using Fugaku, the world’s fastest supercomputer, found that almost 100% of airborne droplets of less than 5 micrometres in size escaped through plastic visors of the kind often used…
Rare-metal abundance points to a missing companion star for the supernova Cassiopeia A
The massive star that exploded to form the supernova known as Cassiopeia A most likely had a companion star that has yet to be spotted, a spectroscopic analysis by RIKEN astrophysicists suggests. This will provide fresh impetus to efforts to locate the companion. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-07-rare-metal-abundance-companion-star-supernova.html…
Merger between two stars led to blue supergiant, iconic supernova
A supernova in a nearby galaxy may have originated from an explosion of a blue supergiant formed by the merger of two stars, simulations by RIKEN astrophysicists suggest. The asymmetric nature of this explosion may provide hints for where to look for the elusive neutron star birthed in this stellar cataclysm. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-03-merger-stars-blue-supergiant-iconic.html…
A filter for cleaner qubits
A research team at the Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU), RIKEN, and the University of Tokyo have demonstrated how to increase the lifetime of qubits inside quantum computers by using an additional “filter” qubit. This work may help make higher fidelity quantum computers that can be used in financial, cryptographic, and chemistry applications. …
Massive protostar keeps growing despite ionization heating by ultraviolet light
A gigantic embryonic star is still getting bigger, even though it propels vast plumes of hot gas away from itself, RIKEN astronomers have found. The discovery could help to solve an enduring mystery about how massive stars grow so large. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-02-massive-protostar-ionization-ultraviolet.html…
Simulation of dwarf galaxy reveals different routes for strontium enrichment
Simulations of a dwarf galaxy by RIKEN astrophysicists have revealed the various processes by which moderately heavy metals such as strontium are birthed. They have found that at least four kinds of stars are needed to explain the observed abundance of these metals in dwarf galaxies. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-01-simulation-dwarf-galaxy-reveals-routes.html…