Discover the physics that matters

Everyday physics

Polarised light and the Brewster law

The Physics behind polarised light and its everyday wonders

Technology

The wonders of semiconductors, part 1

An exploration of the atomic world to uncover what makes semiconductors, the foundations of modern technology, so unique.

Quantum physics

Bohr atomic model

By stating the problem with classical physics clearly, Niels Bohr showed us a new way of looking at the micro-world.

History of physics

What was historic scientific peer review like?

The practice from which modern science gains much of its trust is in fact a recent development

History of physics

The discovery of the electron

How J.J. Thomson’s groundbreaking work revolutionised our understanding of matter

Editorial

Topological phases and transitions: the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physics

The 2016 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded for work on topology and we explain exactly what it all means

Space

Why the BICEP2 results are important to physicists, part 2

How physicists use BICEP2, a telescope in the remote South Pole, to study polarisation of CMBR; and how some believe it should be verified first.

Space

How to fight asteroids

An asteroid has hit the Earth before and may hit it again with devastating consequences: figuring out how we can fight one is a very real problem physicists are trying to solve

Editorial

Training artificial neural networks: the 2024 Physics Nobel

For foundational discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks

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