We reveal the full energy-momentum structure of the pseudogap of underdoped high-$T_c$ cuprate superconductors. Our combined theoretical and experimental analysis explains the spectral-weight suppression observed in the $B_{2g}$ Raman response at finite energies in terms of a pseudogap appearing in the single-electron excitation spectra above the Fermi level in the nodal direction of momentum space. This result suggests an $s$-wave pseudogap (which never closes in the energy-momentum space), distinct from the $d$-wave superconducting gap. Recent tunneling and photoemission experiments on underdoped cuprates also find a natural explanation within the $s$-wave pseudogap scenario.

The magnetic domains of embedded micromagnets with $2\mu \mathrm{m}\times 2\mu \mathrm{m}$ dimensions defined in epitaxial ${\mathrm{La}}_{0.7}{\mathrm{Sr}}_{0.3}{\mathrm{MnO}}_3$ (LSMO) thin films and ${\mathrm{LaFeO}}_3/\mathrm{LSMO}$ bilayers were investigated using soft x-ray magnetic microscopy. Square micromagnets aligned with their edges parallel to the easy axes of LSMO provide an ideal experimental geometry for probing the influence of interface exchange coupling on the magnetic domain patterns. The observation of unique domain patterns not reported for ferromagnetic metal microstructures, namely divergent antiferromagnetic vortex domains and “$Z$”-type domains, suggests the simultaneous presence of spin-flop coupling and local exchange bias in this system.

Inelastic neutron scattering is used to measure the spin excitation spectrum of the Heisenberg $S=1/2$ ladder material $({\mathrm{C}}_7{\mathrm{H}}_{10}\mathrm{N}{)}_2{\mathrm{CuBr}}_4$ in its entirety, both in the gapped spin liquid and the magnetic field-induced Tomonaga-Luttinger spin liquid regimes. A fundamental change of the spin dynamics is observed between these two regimes. Density matrix renormalization group calculations quantitatively reproduce and help understand the observed commensurate and incommensurate excitations. The results validate long-standing quantum field-theoretical predictions but also test the limits of that approach.

In bacteria, regulatory proteins search for a specific DNA-binding target via “facilitated diffusion”: a series of rounds of three-dimensional diffusion in the cytoplasm, and one-dimensional (1D) linear diffusion along the DNA contour. Using large scale Brownian dynamics simulations we find that each of these steps is affected differently by crowding proteins, which can either be bound to the DNA acting as a road block to the 1D diffusion, or freely diffusing in the cytoplasm. Macromolecular crowding can strongly affect mechanistic features such as the balance between three-dimensional and 1D diffusion, but leads to surprising robustness of the total search time.

We propose a simple model, supported by contact-dynamics simulations as well as rheology and friction measurements, that links the transition from continuous to discontinuous shear thickening in dense granular pastes to distinct lubrication regimes in the particle contacts. We identify a local Sommerfeld number that determines the transition from Newtonian to shear-thickening flows, and then show that the suspension’s volume fraction and the boundary lubrication friction coefficient control the nature of the shear-thickening transition, both in simulations and experiments.

The 3D distribution of nanocrystals at the liquid-air interface is imaged for the first time on a single-particle level by cryogenic electron tomography, revealing the equilibrium concentration profile from the interface to the bulk of the liquid. When the surface tension of the liquid is decreased, the interaction of the nanocrystals with the liquid-air interface shifts from adsorption to desorption. Macroscopic surface tension measurements do not detect this transition, due to the presence of surface-active molecular species.

A simple argument indicates that covariant loop gravity (spin foam theory) predicts a maximal acceleration and hence forbids the development of curvature singularities. This supports the results obtained for cosmology and black holes using canonical methods.

We propose a nonperturbative formulation of planar scattering amplitudes in $\mathcal{N}=4$ supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory, or, equivalently, polygonal Wilson loops. The construction is based on the operator product expansion approach and introduces a new decomposition of the Wilson loop in terms of fundamental building blocks named pentagon transitions. These transitions satisfy a simple relation to the worldsheet $S$ matrix on top of the so-called Gubser-Klebanov-Polyakov vacuum which allows us to bootstrap them at any value of the coupling. In this Letter we present a subsector of the full solution which we call the gluonic part. We match our results with both weak and strong coupling data available in the literature.

Interactions between atoms and lasers provide the potential for unprecedented control of quantum states. Fulfilling this potential requires detailed knowledge of frequency noise in optical oscillators with state-of-the-art stability. We demonstrate a technique that precisely measures the noise spectrum of an ultrastable laser using optical lattice-trapped ${}^{87}\mathrm{Sr}$ atoms as a quantum projection noise-limited reference. We determine the laser noise spectrum from near dc to 100 Hz via the measured fluctuations in atomic excitation, guided by a simple and robust theory model. The noise spectrum yields a 26(4) mHz linewidth at a central frequency of 429 THz, corresponding to an optical quality factor of $1.6\times {10}^{16}$. This approach improves upon optical heterodyne beats between two similar laser systems by providing information unique to a single laser and complements the traditionally used Allan deviation which evaluates laser performance at relatively long time scales. We use this technique to verify the reduction of resonant noise in our ultrastable laser via feedback from an optical heterodyne beat. Finally, we show that knowledge of our laser’s spectrum allows us to accurately predict the laser-limited stability for optical atomic clocks.

We present results of an extensive molecular dynamics simulation of the structure and fluctuations of a liquid-gas interface, close to its triple point, in a system with cutoff Lennard-Jones interactions. The equilibrium density profile, averaged and (shape dependent) constrained intrinsic density profiles together with the fluctuations of the interfacial shape are extracted using an intrinsic sampling method. The correlation between fluctuations in the interfacial shape and in the intrinsic density show that the latter is not due to rigid translations of some underlying profile, as is most commonly assumed. Instead, over the whole range of wavelengths from the system size down to the molecular diameter, we see wave-vector dependent behavior in good agreement with a nonlocal interfacial Hamiltonian theory specifying the shape dependence of the intrinsic profiles.

The temperature evolution of structural effects associated with charge order (CO) and spin order in ${\mathrm{La}}_{1.67}{\mathrm{Sr}}_{0.33}{\mathrm{NiO}}_4$ has been investigated using neutron powder diffraction. We report an anomalous shrinking of the $c/a$ lattice parameter ratio that correlates with $T_{\mathrm{CO}}$. The sign of this change can be explained by the change in interlayer Coulomb energy between the static-stripe-ordered state and the fluctuating-stripe-ordered state or the charge-disordered state. In addition, we identify a contribution to the mean-square displacements of Ni and in-plane O atoms whose width correlates quite well with the size of the pseudogap extracted from the reported optical conductivity, with a non-Debye-like component that persists below and well above $T_{\mathrm{CO}}$. We infer that dynamic charge-stripe correlations survive to $T\sim 2T_{\mathrm{CO}}$.

In this Letter using experimental and theoretical methods, we show that the solid solutions of group 14 nitrides having spinel structure ($\gamma \mathrm{\text{−}}{M}_3{\mathrm{N}}_4$ where $M=\mathrm{Si}$, Ge, Sn) exhibit mainly direct electronic band gaps with values that span the entire visible wavelength region, making these hard and thermally stable materials suitable for optoelectronic devices and, in particular, lighting applications. Using the simulated band structure, we also calculate the exciton binding energy. The combination of large exciton binding energies and the tunable electronic band gaps in the visible range makes these binary spinel nitrides and their solid solutions a new class of multifunctional materials with optoelectronic properties that can be engineered to suit the desired application.

A numerical method is developed by which the tunnel ionization dynamics of bound systems in laser fields can be isolated from the total wave function, as given by the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. The analysis of the numerical data for a step function field reveals the following definition for the tunnel time. It is the time it takes the ground state to develop the underbarrier wave function components necessary for reaching the static field ionization rate. This definition is generalized to time varying laser fields. The tunnel time is found to scale with the Keldysh tunnel time. Our Letter establishes the physical meaning of the tunnel time, its relation to the Keldysh tunnel time, and suggests how it can be measured.

Transversal implementations of encoded unitary gates are highly desirable for fault-tolerant quantum computation. Though transversal gates alone cannot be computationally universal, they can be combined with specially distilled resource states in order to achieve universality. We show that “triorthogonal” stabilizer codes, introduced for state distillation by Bravyi and Haah [Phys. Rev. A 86, 052329 (2012)], admit transversal implementation of the controlled-controlled-$Z$ gate. We then construct a universal set of fault-tolerant gates without state distillation by using only transversal controlled-controlled-$Z$, transversal Hadamard, and fault-tolerant error correction. We also adapt the distillation procedure of Bravyi and Haah to Toffoli gates, improving on existing Toffoli distillation schemes.

We realize indirect partial measurement of a transmon qubit in circuit quantum electrodynamics by interaction with an ancilla qubit and projective ancilla measurement with a dedicated readout resonator. Accurate control of the interaction and ancilla measurement basis allows tailoring the measurement strength and operator. The tradeoff between measurement strength and qubit backaction is characterized through the distortion of a qubit Rabi oscillation imposed by ancilla measurement in different bases. Combining partial and projective qubit measurements, we provide the solid-state demonstration of the correspondence between a nonclassical weak value and the violation of a Leggett-Garg inequality.

The recent analysis of the Planck results reveals a tension between the best fits for (${\Omega }_{m0}$, $H_0$) derived from the cosmic microwave background or baryonic acoustic oscillations on the one hand, and the Hubble diagram on the other hand. These observations probe the Universe on very different scales since they involve light beams of very different angular sizes; hence, the tension between them may indicate that they should not be interpreted the same way. More precisely, this Letter questions the accuracy of using only the (perturbed) Friedmann-Lemaître geometry to interpret all the cosmological observations, regardless of their angular or spatial resolution. We show that using an inhomogeneous “Swiss-cheese” model to interpret the Hubble diagram allows us to reconcile the inferred value of ${\Omega }_{m0}$ with the Planck results. Such an approach does not require us to invoke new physics nor to violate the Copernican principle.

Entangled photons can be used to make measurements with an accuracy beyond that possible with classical light. While most implementations of quantum metrology have used states made up of a single color of photons, we show that entangled states of two colors can show supersensitivity to optical phase and path length by using a photonic crystal fiber source of photon pairs inside an interferometer. This setup is relatively simple and robust to experimental imperfections. We demonstrate sensitivity beyond the standard quantum limit and show superresolved interference fringes using entangled states of two, four, and six photons.

PbTe is a well-known thermoelectric material. Recent x-ray total scattering studies suggest that Pb moves off center along 100 in PbTe, by $\sim 0.2\AA$ at 300 K, producing a split Pb-Te pair distribution. We present an extended x-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy (EXAFS) study of PbTe (and Tl doped PbTe) to determine if Pb or Te is off center. EXAFS provides sensitive $r$- or $k$-space phase information which can differentiate between a split peak for the Pb-Te distribution (indicative of off-center Pb) and a thermally broadened peak. We find no evidence for a split peak for Pb-Te or Te-Pb. At 300 K, the vibration amplitude for Pb-Te (or Te-Pb) is large; this thermally induced disorder is indicative of weak bonds, and the large disorder is consistent with the low thermal conductivity at 300 K. We also find evidence of an anharmonic potential for the nearest Pb-Te bonds, consistent with the overall anharmonicity found for the phonon modes. This effect is modeled by a “skew” factor ($C3$) which significantly improves the fit of the Pb-Te and Te-Pb peaks for the high temperature EXAFS data; $C3$ becomes significant above approximately 150–200 K. The consequences of these results will be discussed.

Through the use of aberration corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy, the atomic configuration of CdTe intragrain Shockley partial dislocation pairs has been determined: Single Cd and Te columns are present at opposite ends of both intrinsic and extrinsic stacking faults. These columns have threefold and fivefold coordination, indicating the presence of dangling bonds. Counterintuitively, density-functional theory calculations show that these dislocation cores do not act as recombination centers; instead, they lead to local band bending that separates electrons and holes and reduces undesirable carrier recombination.

We resolved the enigma of anisotropic electronic transport in strained vanadium dioxide (${\mathrm{VO}}_2$) films by inquiring into the role that strain plays in the nanoscale phase separation in the vicinity of the insulator-to-metal transition. The root source of the anisotropy was visualized as the formation of a peculiar unidirectional stripe state which accompanies the phase transition. Furthermore, nanoscale infrared spectroscopy unveils distinct facets of electron-lattice interplay at three different stages of the phase transition. These stages include the initial formation of sparse nonpercolating metallic domains without noticeable involvement of the lattice followed by an electron-lattice coupled anisotropic stripe state close to percolation which ultimately evolves into a nearly isotropic rutile metallic phase. Our results provide a unique mesoscopic perspective for the tunable macroscopic phenomena in strained metal oxide films.