Sponsored Collection | Humble Beginning, Bright Future: Institute of Physics (CAS) at 90

2018 Science  
Humble Beginnings, Bright Future Institute of Physics (CAS) at 90 INTRODUCTIONS 3 P hysics is a field of extremes. It studies the microworld, including subatomic particles, and the macroworld, including magnetic fields and plasma found in space. It explores the lowest and highest limits of temperature, pressure, and speed. These seemingly disparate subfields are all housed at the Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IOP CAS), which is commemorating its 90th year. At the nexus of
more » ... l these extremes is superconductivity, or the ability of an element, intermetallic alloy, or compound to conduct electricity without resistance or energy loss below a certain temperature. Magnets and very cold temperatureson the order of 39 K (-234°C, -389°F)-are used to control the flow of electricity. Remarkably, an electrical current will flow forever in a closed loop of superconducting material, which makes it the closest thing to perpetual motion-a sort of Rube Goldberg machine for electricity. These near-magical materials are employed in devices that have revolutionized theoretical physics; for example, particle accelerators probe the inner workings of atoms, while tokamaks contain hot plasma that could one day be used in thermonuclear fusion. Superconductors are also an important factor in other technological breakthroughs, including magnetic resonance imaging machines that reduce the need for exploratory surgery, digital and quantum computers that store and transmit ever-increasing amounts of data, and Maglev trains that carry people over long distances in a much shorter time than conventional trains. Inside this supplement is a sampling of the variety of cutting-edge research that is taking place at IOP. This prestigious institute is extensively pursuing superconductivity as well as the physics of condensed and soft matter, optics, subatomic particles, plasma, magnets, and computers. Join us in celebrating IOP's long history and its incredible contributions not just to science, but to humankind. Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets IOP began research on rare-earth magnetic materials in the 1970s, and successfully developed neodymium (Nd-Fe-B) permanent-magnet materials in collaboration with the Institute of Electronics in 1983. In 1985, San Huan New Materials R&D Company was founded with technology investment from IOP, and China started manufacturing Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets, becoming the third country to do so after the United States and Japan, which had been the only two countries manufacturing IOP logo made from metallic plastic IOP has enjoyed a long and glorious journey through its first 90 years, with many remarkable achievements to its credit. FRONTIER RESEARCH ON SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AT THE INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS 9 FIGURE 1. Discovery of superconductivity at 55 K in samarium (oxygen, fluoride) iron arsenide [SmFeAs(O 0.9 F 0.1 )] (18). FIGURE 4. Local electronic environment of a tetrahedral complex (A) and selected orbitals (B) in iron-based superconductors (43). FIGURE 3. Surface-induced fluorescence attenuation (SIFA) method. (A) Experimental setup. (B) Sketch of a lipid bilayer with the helices representing the peptides at different depths. (C) Degree of attenuation of a dye as a function of dye-surface distance, where the red segment on the curve represents the most sensitive SIFA range. (D) 3D trace of a dye in the bilayer. (E) Fluorescence trace of an LL-37 molecule in the bilayer. FIGURE 4. Tetranucleosomeson-a-string structure and its regulation by the protein-histone complex known as "facilitates chromatin transcription" (FACT), which attenuates the chromatin fibers by binding the tails of histone H2B. FIGURE 4. Gallium nitride (GaN) growth on maskless, chemically etched grooved sapphire substrate and different-colored LED chips with white and yellow-green light.
doi:10.1126/science.360.6389.673-b fatcat:n4txuzzlyrbpdlzzlwig34h2la