Zerush

Andi's writeup

Researchers at the University of Toronto and Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have developed carbon nanolattices with unprecedented strength-to-weight ratios using machine learning optimization[^1]. The team achieved a specific strength of 2.03 MPa m³ kg⁻¹ at densities below 215 kg m⁻³, creating materials as strong as carbon steel but with the density of Styrofoam[^2].

The breakthrough came through multi-objective Bayesian optimization of lattice designs combined with two-photon polymerization 3D printing. This approach improved strength by 118% and Young's modulus by 68% compared to traditional designs[^3]. By reducing strut diameters to 300 nm, the researchers produced high-purity pyrolytic carbon structures containing 94% sp²-bonded carbon[^3].

The team successfully scaled production using multi-focus two-photon polymerization to create millimeter-scale metamaterials containing 18.75 million nanolattice cells[^3]. "If you were to replace components made of titanium on a plane with this material, you would be looking at fuel savings of 80 litres per year for every kilogram of material you replace," said Peter Serles, the study's first author[^4].

[^1]: 3D Printing Industry - Optimized Carbon Nanolattices Achieve Record Strength

[^2]: Technology Networks - Machine Learning Designs Materials As Strong As Steel and As Light As Foam

[^3]: Nature - Stiff, lightweight, and programmable architectured pyrolytic carbon lattices via modular assembling

[^4]: Science Daily - Strong as steel, light as foam: High-performance, nano-architected materials

Andi's Writeup

Physicists at Washington University in St. Louis created the first-ever "time quasicrystal" - a new phase of matter that breaks conventional time symmetry patterns[^1][^2]. The breakthrough, published in Physical Review X in March 2025, demonstrates how a quantum system can spontaneously organize its motion into complex patterns that repeat in time but lack standard periodicity[^2].

The research team, led by Chong Zu, created their time quasicrystal inside a diamond by:

• Using nitrogen beams to create spaces for electrons in the diamond structure
• Applying microwave pulses to initiate rhythmic patterns
• Achieving hundreds of stable oscillation cycles before breakdown[^3]

Unlike regular time crystals which tick with one rhythm, time quasicrystals produce multiple incommensurate frequencies - similar to playing multiple musical notes simultaneously rather than a single note[^2]. The system demonstrated robust "subharmonic" responses at these multiple frequencies, proving it was a true new phase of matter rather than just an engineered pattern[^1].

The discovery has potential applications in:

• Quantum computing memory storage
• High-precision timekeeping
• Advanced quantum sensors
• Signal processing[^3]

[^1]: Physical Review X - Experimental Realization of Discrete Time Quasi-Crystals

[^2]: Physics Magazine - A New Type of Time Crystal

[^3]: Tech Explorist - WashU physicists created a new phase of matter in the center of a diamond