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Precise control of individual neuron firing is key for neuroscience. Here, the authors show a novel opsin-free photostimulation method that activates single neurons in vivo by femtosecond laser scanning-induced Ca2+ influx and action potential firing.

Examples of materials with non-trivial band topology in the presence of strong electron correlations are rare. Now it is shown that quantum fluctuations near a quantum phase transition can promote topological phases in a heavy-fermion compound.

Momentum-entangled atom pairs are used to demonstrate quantum non-locality, where changing one atom in an entangled pair instantly alters the state of the other atom. This result paves the way to study interactions between quantum states and gravity.

The STAR experiment at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider at Brookhaven National Laboratory demonstrates evidence of spin correlations in \(\Lambda \bar{\Lambda }\) hyperon pairs inherited from virtual spin-correlated strange quark–antiquark pairs during QCD confinement.

The study provides observational evidence of energy transfer in space plasmas, showing hydrogen and helium ions interact differently with ion-scale waves. Despite helium’s low abundance, they show their interaction can excite electrostatic waves, facilitating energy transfer across scales and challenging traditional models.

Spatial transcriptomics (ST) technologies link tissue morphology with gene expression, but remain expensive to use; furthermore, models that predict ST data from histopathology images possess considerable limitations. Here, the authors develop STimage, a deep learning probabilistic framework for ST prediction from histopathology images while prioritising robustness and interpretability.

Identifying jets originating from heavy quarks plays a fundamental role in hadronic collider experiments. In this work, the ATLAS Collaboration describes and tests a transformer-based neural network architecture for jet flavour tagging based on low-level input and physics-inspired constraints.

Fracto-mechanoluminescence is the emission of light from fracturing solids. Here, the authors show that this emission in Mn halides arises from elastic stiffness, electromechanical coupling, and trap states that activate Mn²⁺ d−d transitions.

A hidden Markov model that uses probabilistic retrospective inference allows for up to one month of unsupervised recalibration in an online cursor-based intracortical brain–machine interface.

The ALICE Collaboration provides details on the microscopic mechanism that ends up creating antideuteron in high-energy proton–proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider.

A universal approach to construct low-resistance oxide layer by multiple tunnelling paths is proposed for efficient and durable Si-based photocathode. This approach can speed up the pace of development of practical photoelectrochemical devices.

The CMS Collaboration reports the measurement of the spin, parity, and charge conjugation properties of all-charm tetraquarks, exotic fleeting particles formed in proton–proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider.

MnBi₂Te₄ has an appealing combination of topological bands and magnetic ordering. While chemical doping with Sb can be used to tune these properties, it typically comes with an increase in defect density. Here, Chen, Wang, Li, Duan, and coauthors demonstrate a defect engineering approach that preserves the topological and magnetic properties of Mn(Bi_1-xSb_x)₂Te₄.

Authors use a high-entropy engineering approach to produce fully amorphous BiTO films by exfoliation and annealing, creating crystalline regions, leading to flexible ceramics with dielectric properties.

Van der Waals materials of the MB₂T₄ family (M = transition metal or rare-earth metal, B = Bi or Sb, T = Te, Se, or S) have attracted interest for their magnetic and topological properties, but their direct synthesis into 2D form remains challenging. Here the authors report a flux-assisted, phase-controlled growth strategy to directly grow six magnetic 2D MB₂T₄ crystals.

An antimatter hypernucleus formed by an anti-lambda hadron, an antiproton and two antineutrons was observed through its two-body decay after production in ultrarelativistic heavy-ion collisions.

Measurements of the inelastic cross section of anti-³He allow the estimation of the transparency of the Milky Way to the propagation of these light antinuclei produced in either cosmic-ray collisions or annihilation of dark-matter particles.

There has been a recent interest in control of magnetism via ionic transport. The appeal of such magneto-ionic control lies in its extent, non-volatility and potential energy-efficiency, however, the number of systems showing such behaviour is limited. Here, Tan, Ma, and coauthors demonstrate magneto-ionic control through Carbon transport.

Gas-phase actinium monofluoride (AcF) has been produced and spectroscopically studied at the CERN-ISOLDE radioactive ion beam facility; the results highlight the potential of ²²⁷AcF for exceptionally sensitive searches of CP violation.

Humanity’s Last Exam, a multi-modal benchmark at the frontier of human knowledge, is designed to be an expert-level closed-ended academic benchmark with broad subject coverage.

Anisotropic disorder is predicted to change the stability of the superfluid state in³He and leads to new phases. Here, Zhelev et al. report signatures of the phase transitions in ³He confined in an extremely anisotropic ordered aerogel including a new polar phase.

A transverse Peierls transition can occur when transverse acoustic phonons couple with conducting p-orbital electrons. Here, the authors observe an incommensurate transverse Peierls transition and signatures of a chiral charge density wave in EuAl₄.

Managing power exhaust in fusion reactors is a key challenge, especially in compact designs for cost-effective commercial energy. This study shows how alternative divertor configurations improve exhaust control, enhance stability, absorb transients and enable independent plasma regulation.

Multi-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analyses of polycystic ovary syndrome in women of East Asian and European ancestries identify 94 independent susceptibility regions, including 73 novel loci.

In ABA trilayer graphene, a temperature gradient generates a transverse voltage that scales quadratically with the gradient and reaches an effective Nernst coefficient of 300 µV K⁻¹ near the charge neutrality point.

The Einstein Probe has discovered a fast X-ray transient, EP240414a, associated with a broad-lined type Ic supernova. Its unusually soft spectrum and weak jet add to the diversity of stellar deaths and suggest a previously unknown Wolf–Rayet star explosion mechanism.

An in situ-grown layer of SiO_xN_y contributes to passivating surface defects in inverted organic solar cells, enabling power conversion efficiency of up to 18.49% and an estimated device lifespan of over 16 years.

Electrochemical hydrogenation drives a reversible conductor–insulator transition in graphene. Authors show that it is 10⁶× faster than other methods and tunable by isotope effects and lattice corrugations, enabling ionic control of 2D electronics.

This study shows that animals can adapt behaviorally to warm environments by speeding up their internal clocks. Suprathreshold temperatures activate the Lim1 pathway in the fly brain, resulting in accelerated circadian clock activity and increased early morning activity.

Triggering and sustaining fusion reactions — with the goal of overall energy production — in a tokamak plasma requires efficient heating. Radio-frequency heating of a three-ion plasma is now experimentally shown to be a potentially viable technique.

The origin of superconductivity enhancement in FeSe monolayer grown on SrTiO₃ compared to bulk FeSe is still a debated issue. Here, Shi et al. report a further 15 K jump of T_c accompanying a second Lifshitz transition triggered by electron doping in FeSe/SrTiO₃monolayer films.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors have shown promise in tumour immunotherapy but resistance has been seen. Here using pre-treatment hepatocellular carcinoma patient biopsies from patients scheduled for immunotherapy, the authors implicate BCL9 and show that a BCL9-targeting peptide promotes anti-tumour immunity in mouse models through targeting macrophages and promoting anti-tumour T cell responses.

The complex electronic motion in the quantum Hall regime in semiconductors has so far eluded analysis of its microscopic structure. Here, the authors use scanning gate microscopy to measure the spatial structure of transport inside a metal in this regime, opening the way for localized manipulation of the electronic states.

Atomically dispersed catalysts show promising activity for electrochemical reactions but often suffer from limited stability. Here, the authors report an atom-ordering strategy that forms triangular Co sites to activate the substrate for durable alkaline hydrogen production.

Strontium ruthenate is an odd-parity superconductor that could support Majorana fermions. Ying et al. report that the critical temperature doubles near lattice dislocations in this material compared with its bulk, arising from effects that could be found in other unconventional superconductors.

Finite momentum superconducting pairing refers to a class of unconventional superconducting states where Cooper pairs acquire a non-zero momentum. Here the authors report a new superconducting state in bulk 4Hb-TaS₂, where magnetic fields induce finite momentum pairing via magnetoelectric coupling.

The exact mechanism for superconductivity in iron-based superconductors remains elusive, but is thought to involve complex interactions between many orbitals. Using angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy, Liuet al. report the electronic structure of the single-layer parent compound FeSe.

Weyl semimetals exhibit exotic properties owing to the presence of Weyl fermions. Here, Xu et al. show that tantalum phosphide is an ideal platform for studying the transport properties of these particles because its low-energy properties are dominated by a single type of Weyl fermion.

Nickelate superconductors attract enormous attention in the field of high-temperature superconductivity. Here the authors report observation of perfect diamagnetism and interfacial effect on the electronic structures in infinite layer Nd_0.8Sr_0.2NiO₂ superconductors.

The nature of unconventional charge density wave in kagome metals is currently under intense debate. Here the authors report the coexistence of the 2 × 2 × 1 charge density wave in the kagome sublattice and the Sb 5p-electron assisted 2 × 2 × 2 charge density waves in CsV₃Sb₅.

A compositionally complex (high-entropy) doping strategy is proposed to fabricate zero-strain high-Ni and Co-free layered cathodes with superior structural and mechanical stabilities and long cycle life.

Generating stable single-atom catalysts is far from straightforward and can involve complicated preparation procedures. Now, mononuclear gold oxo-clusters formed in alkaline solutions through a facile one-pot synthesis are shown to catalyse the heterogeneous methanol self-coupling reaction to methyl formate and hydrogen. The intrinsic activity is the same for both supported and unsupported gold catalysts.

The coexistence of frustrated magnetism and bond order is demonstrated in a family of antiferromagnets. Layers of dual frustrated orders are interleaved in the same crystal lattice, which presents an exciting possibility for engineering new responses.

A comparison of electron scattering from the mirror nuclei hydrogen-3 and helium-3 reveals that proton–proton pairs have a much larger contribution to short-range correlations in helium-3 than in heavier nuclei, implying an unexpected nuclear structure.

Surface states in topological quantum matter are protected by their band structure. Here, on confined superfluid ³He as a model for topological superconductors, the authors report experimental evidence on the fragility of surface Andreev bound states with respect to the details of surface scattering.

An extreme flare has been seen from a supermassive black hole at redshift z = 2.6. First detected in 2018, it is 30 times brighter than similar events. The most likely cause is the shredding of a star of 30 solar masses or more.

The authors report that the metallic spin-1/2 chain compound Ti₄MnBi₂ forms near a quantum critical point with inherent frustration. They identify strong 1D spin and 3D electron coupling that should stimulate the search for materials exhibiting a 1D Kondo effect and heavy fermions.

There is an intensive effort to develop Li-ion batteries that rely on sustainable materials. Here the authors employ a complex doping approach to synthesize low-Ni, Co-free cathode materials that display promising electrochemical performances.