Absolute zero is the lowest theoretical temperature, which scientists have defined as minus 459.67 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 273.15 degrees Celsius). That's even colder than outer space. So far, ...

Temperature is typically thought of as the average energy of individual atoms or molecules within a given collection. For atoms of similar mass, this "kinetic temperature" would basically be their ...

Try as they might, scientists can’t truly rid a space or an object of its energy. But what “zero-point energy” really means ...

For the first time, scientists have observed the iconic Shapiro steps, a staircase-like quantum effect, in ultracold atoms.

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American Under a tangled mess of pipes, tubes, gauges, ...

Heat is the energy of motion of tiny particles, the vigorous dance of the atoms and molecules that constitute matter. When matter is chilled, the dance becomes torpid. At Absolute Zero ( —273.13 ...

In 1986, American physicist Arthur Ashkin developed a fascinating tool that could gently pick and move microscopic objects like cells and molecules without touching them. This tool, called optical ...

The LIGO gravitational wave observatory in the United States is so sensitive to vibrations it can detect the tiny ripples in space-time called gravitational waves. These waves are caused by colliding ...

In a striking display of quantum physics, a team of researchers has recreated one of science’s most legendary experiments—with unprecedented precision. At MIT, scientists cooled thousands of atoms to ...

Atoms of the soft, silvery metal indium have been chilled to temperatures so cold that the particles can demonstrate strange quantum behaviour, such as forming new types of matter. Because indium ...

IBM research has managed to store information in tiny clusters of 12 iron atoms using antiferromagnetism. The downside? Once these clusters are warmed to 5 Kelvin, the data gets erased.