One of the coolest things about physics is that the same basic concept can pop up in several seemingly unrelated things: say, a CD, the seed shrimp’s antennae, certain fossils in the Burgess shale, ...

Scientists have observed “bending” atoms using a crystal grating—an experiment once believed impossible at the high energies required. The authors of a new, non-peer reviewed study detail how the a ...

Researchers have taken atomic diffraction to a new level, revealing surprising behaviors in high-energy helium and hydrogen ...

Scientists have demonstrated that atoms can exhibit wave-like behavior, challenging long-held assumptions that experiments of this nature were impossible and opening new doors in quantum physics. The ...

Quantum physics tell us that even massive particles can behave like waves, as if they could be in several places at once. This phenomenon is typically proven in the diffraction of a matter wave at a ...

The spectrum of laser technologies available to hackers has gradually widened from basic gas lasers through CO2 tubes, diode lasers, and now fiber lasers. One of the newer entries is the MOPA laser, ...

A variety of ultrathin nanomechanical diffraction gratings that have been fashioned from the “wonder material” graphene have been created by an international team of researchers. The team wanted to ...

Here’s a great picture from [Jelly & Marshmallows] that shows off the wild effects of melted chocolate poured onto a diffraction grating. A diffraction grating is a kind of optical component whose ...