Switzerland

Neutrons take a glimpse inside the molecular structure of plant-based foods

Recently published findings from experiments carried out at the ILL and at SINQ confirm monochromatic small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) as the definitive go-to method to characterise multiband superconductivity in a material.

New findings based on neutron scattering experiments performed at the ILL and ISIS reveal supersymmetric behaviour in a quantum material, demonstrating that it can emerge naturally in condensed matter. This has promising practical implications for making stable qubits for quantum computing. The study, led by researchers at PSI, is published in Nature Communications.

Some magnetic materials feature peculiar states the fundamental understanding of which may pave the way for future applications. Neutron experiments have just revealed that they can be unexpectedly stable with respect to microscopic disorder.

In everyday life, we typically encounter water in one of three familiar states – solid, liquid or gas. But there are in fact many more phases, some of which – predicted to exist at high temperature and pressure – are so strange they’re referred to as exotic. State-of-the-art neutron spectrometers and sample environment infrastructures at the Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL) have enabled the first experimental observation of one of these exotic phases – plastic ice VII.

By linking theoretical predictions with neutron experiments, researchers have found evidence for quantum spin ice in the material Ce2Sn2O7. Their findings could inspire the technology of tomorrow, such as quantum computers. The results have been published in the journal ‘Nature Physics’.