2023-11-10

产生强超短光脉冲的锁模激光器一直是超快科学技术的支柱。然而，迄今为止，它们仍然体积庞大，并且与芯片级纳米光子学集成具有挑战性。研究人员现已在铌酸锂纳米光子平台中开发出一种紧凑型锁模激光器，促进了超快技术的小型化和芯片级超快纳米光子电路的开发进程。

Mode-locked lasers generating intense ultrashort pulses of light have been the backbone of ultrafast sciences and technologies. However, they have so far remained bulky and challenging to integrate with chip-scale nanophotonics. Researchers have now developed a compact mode-locked laser in a lithium niobate nanophotonic platform, facilitating the miniaturization of ultrafast technologies and the development of chip-scale ultrafast nanophotonic circuits.

2023-11-17

封面照片展示的是在印度巴尔斯瓦垃圾填埋场的一场大火中回收材料的一个人的身影，它象征着固体废物管理不善所面临的挑战。随着气温接近巴黎协定限制并危及到全球甲烷承诺目标，相关应对行动迫在眉睫。解决方案需要技术和行为实践的重大转变，以防止即将发生的环境灾难和不可持续的资源利用。

A person recovering materials amid a massive fire at the Bhalswa landfill site in India symbolizes the challenges of solid waste mismanagement. Urgent action is vital as temperatures approach the Paris Agreement limit and jeopardize the Global Methane Pledge goal. Solutions demand a critical shift in technical and behavioral practices to prevent an impending environmental catastrophe and unsustainable use of resources.

2023-11-24

白云石是一种重要矿物，产自令人惊叹的地质构造中，例如意大利德雷辛宁山脉（如封面图中所示）、尼亚加拉瀑布和石林等。尽管天然储量丰富，但此前科学家一直未能在实验室中培育出白云石——这一矛盾被称为“白云石问题”。然而新的研究表明，与人们的常识相反，白云石需要溶解才能激活其生长。这些发现为制造缺陷更少的材料提供了基础见解。

Dolomite is a key mineral in stunning geological formations, such as Tre Cime di Lavaredo (also called Drei Zinnen; shown here), Niagara Falls, and Hoodoos. Despite its natural abundance, laboratory growth of dolomite has proven impossible—a contradiction known as the “dolomite problem.” New research unveils that, counterintuitively, dolomite requires dissolution to activate its growth. These revelations offer foundational insights to manufacture materials with fewer defects.

2023-12-01

封面图展示的是一只帽带企鹅正在照顾一只小企鹅，而它的伴侣则在小憩。在南极洲喧嚣的企鹅群中成功繁殖出后代的企鹅们，通过数千秒长的微睡眠获得了总长超过11个小时的睡眠，这种适应性使它们能够警惕捕食者和好斗的邻居。研究结果表明，微睡眠能够实现一些睡眠功能。

A chinstrap penguin (Pygoscelis antarcticus) cares for a chick while its partner catches a quick nap. Penguins successfully breeding in the hustle and bustle of a colony in Antarctica obtain more than 11 hours of sleep through thousands of seconds-long microsleeps—an adaption that enables them to watch for predators and aggressive neighbors. The findings suggest that microsleeps can fulfill some sleep functions.