Press releases
The crazy dance of falling knots
2018-09-25
Can the topology of microobjects influence the way they move in a fluid? Experiments and simulations of Polish and Swiss researchers published in the Physical Review Letters show that the dynamics of elastic chains settling in a fluid depends on the way they are knotted. The settling chains form flat, toroidal structures composed of several intertwined loops, which swirl around each other. The study is important for the proper interpretation of sedimentation and centrifugation experiments of biomolecules. | More
Quantum non-locality in ultra-cold atomic gases
2018-06-20
Non-locality, Einstein’s „spooky action at a distance”, has already been observed between quantum objects separated by more than one kilometer. This achievement is not a surprise – recent years have seen a major advancement in the quest for non-local systems. In their „Physical Review Letters” publication, researchers from the Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw present a novel and versatile method for creating and detecting such correlations in a many-body system of ultra-cold atoms | More
Dark inflation opens up a gravitational window onto the first moments after the Big Bang
2018-06-07
Dark matter and dark energy may have driven inflation, the exponential expansion of the Universe moments after the Big Bang. A new cosmological model proposed by physicists at the University of Warsaw, which takes dark inflation into account, is the first to outline a precise chronology of the main events during the early history of our Universe. The model makes a spectacular prediction: that it should be possible to detect gravitational waves that were formed just fractions of a second after the creation of spacetime | More
Quantum memory with record-breaking capacity based on laser-cooled atoms
2017-12-15
The emerging domain of parallelized quantum information processing opens up new possibilities for precise measurements, communication and imaging. Precise control of multiple stored photons allows efficient handling of this subtle information in large amounts. In the Quantum Memories Laboratory at Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw a group of laser-cooled atoms has been used as a memory which can store simultaneously up to 665 quantum states of light. The experimental results have been published in a prestigious Nature Communications journal | More
Semiliquid chains pulled out of a sea of microparticles
2017-07-20
An electrode brought to the surface of a liquid that contains microparticles can be used to pull out surprisingly long chains of particles. Curiously enough, the particles in the chains are held together by a thin layer of liquid that covers them. This spectacular phenomenon, discovered with the involvement of Polish scientists and described in the prestigious journal Nature Communications, holds promise for a broad variety of applications | More
Quantum entanglement between a single photon and a trillion of atoms
2017-03-01
New light is shed on the famous paradox of Einstein, Podolsky and Rosen after 80 years. A group of researchers from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw has created a multidimensional entangled state of a single photon and a trillion of hot rubidium atoms. This hybrid entanglement has been stored in the laboratory for several microseconds. The research has been published in the prestigious Optica journal | More
Miniature device is three times more efficient in generating new colours of laser pulses
2017-02-24
A group of researchers from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw has just published the results of their works on miniature device - a tripler - for generating femtosecond laser pulses in the UV. Not only does the device has three times higher efficiency than previously used setups, but also fits on a finger tip, thanks to using a unique software package, developed in Warsaw, during the design stage | More
Large groups of individual photons now available on demand – an equivalent of photonic ‘integrated circuit’
2017-02-08
Holographic atomic memory, invented and constructed by physicists from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw, is the first device able to generate single photons on demand in groups of several dozen or more. The device, successfully demonstrated in practice, overcomes one of the fundamental obstacles towards the construction of some type of quantum computer | More
Towards therapeutic applications of mRNA: new insights into translation and decapping
2016-11-30
Gene therapy gives hope to millions of patients. Researchers from the University of Warsaw have been working on mRNA containing a modified fragment which initiates protein biosynthesis. Recently published results reveal that new compounds – designed and synthesized at the University of Warsaw – are more stable and effective than their natural equivalents, and their synthesis is simpler. The compounds allow scientists to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms of protein biosynthesis in cells, which in turn should help them design better therapeutics | More
Single photon converter – a key component of quantum internet
2016-11-22
A Polish-British team of physicists has constructed and tested a compact, efficient converter capable of modifying the quantum properties of individual photons. The new device should facilitate the construction of complex quantum computers, and in the future may become an important element in global quantum networks, the successors of today’s Internet | More