Nanometer-scale phonon-plasmon coupling
The LPS STEM group and their collaborators have unveiled the interaction of phonons and plasmons at the nanometer scale. This interaction, which is discussed in an article just published in …
In situ multiscale observation of nanostructure growth in solution
In some conditions, very elongated rod-like silver nanoparticles can be grown on gold seeds. What is the origin of this surprising shape? LPS researchers, in collaboration with the MPQ laboratory …
Kidney stones studied by STEM-EELS spectromicroscopy reveal their similarities with other biominerals
Epidemiological studies show a clear increase in renal lithiasis in most western countries, induced by changes in eating habits and lifestyle. Almost 20% of the population will be affected by …
What is the friction of foam?
Is it better to take a smooth or a rough spoon to eat your chocolate mousse? That is the question that a team from the LPS answers by studying the …
Optimal thermal activation and barrier crossing
In physics, chemistry or biology, reaction rates are very often limited by energy barriers that have to be overcome by thermal activation. Researchers from LPS, LPTMS (CNRS/U. Paris Saclay) and …
How a virus self-organizes while correcting its errors
RNA viruses are a family of infectious agents with sometimes dramatic health and economic consequences such as those we are currently experiencing. Over the course of a life cycle, viral …
A unified description of the preferred orientation of clays
Clays are lamellar minerals ubiquitous on the earth’s surface. Researchers at IC2MP, LPS and ICMN have shown that the preferred orientation of clays in a wide variety of natural environments …
Atomic manipulation of the gap in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x
A major challenge in the study of high temperature superconductivity in copper oxide materials is to understand their macroscopic quantum behavior in terms of microscopic mechanisms. Using the electric field …
Topological phenomena in condensed matter — where mathematics meets materials science
Direct observation of topological properties of materials is now possible in experiments on mesoscopic samples, including measurement of “winding numbers” — which were until now considered rather abstract properties of …