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Phonon scattering limits charge transport in perovskite solar cells, yet the interactions involved are still poorly understood. Here, Wright et al. show by photoluminescence measurements and first-principles calculations that longitudinal optical phonons dominate the electron-phonon coupling at room temperature.

Heavy pnictogen-based compounds are promising nontoxic and stable alternatives to lead-halide perovskites, but are limited by carrier localization. Here, by investigating CuSbSe₂, the authors identify how this limitation could be avoided.

Polarons — quasiparticles arising from the interaction of electrons with lattice vibrations — strongly influence materials properties. This Review provides a map of the theoretical models and experimental techniques used to study polarons in materials, presenting paradigmatic examples of different types of polarons and polaron-driven phenomena.

A room-temperature double-layer WS₂ microcavity is used to explore spin anisotropy and tune it with interlayer spacing.

The complex coupling between charge-carriers and phonons in bismuth oxyiodide (BiOI) are uncovered, showing how carrier localisation is avoided and long transport lengths achieved. As a result, BiOI is revealed to be highly effective for X-ray detection.

The transition from a polaronic to a metallic state as the carrier density increases in strontium titanate overlaps with the onset and peak of the bulk superconducting behaviour.

Coupling electromagnetic radiation with matter is promising to tailor optoelectronics properties of functional materials. Here, the authors demonstrate that internal fields induced by coherent lattice motions can be used to control transient excitonic optical response in halide perovskite crystals.

The Mouse Cancer Cell line Atlas (MCCA) provides major advances towards a mechanistic understanding of cancer genomes.

Ternary chalcogenides are gaining interest as nontoxic, stable solar absorbers. Here, the authors investigate NaBiS₂, finding cation disorder to be a critical parameter that enables its high absorption strength and unusual charge-carrier kinetics.

Here, the authors perform spectroscopic investigations of individual Formamidinium lead iodide nanocrystals, demonstrate single-photon emission and unravel the mechanisms of carrier–phonon interactions. These results will guide the development of next-generation devices for photovoltaics and quantum technologies.

Excited state dynamics of alloyed quantum dots differ from that of binary quantum dots. Here, the authors use femtosecond spectroscopy and theoretical calculations to show that alloying tunes relaxation dynamics separately from traditional optical properties of quantum dots.

Phonon polaritons are promising for mid-infrared photonics but only longitudinal optical phonons are directly accessed by electrical currents. Here, the authors predict and experimentally confirm hybrid longitudinal-transverse excitations. This could lead to phonon polariton-based electrically pumped mid-infrared emitters.

Exciton transport in 2D Ruddlesden−Popper perovskite plays a key role for their optoelectronic performance. Here, authors significantly enhance free exciton mobilities in exfoliated thin flakes by anchoring butyl ammonium cation with polymethyl methacrylate, which also improves lattice rigidity.

Many-body interactions in solids offer opportunities to realize striking physical properties. Here the authors demonstrate the formation of plasmonic polarons in Eu_1-xGd _x O and their tunability with charge carrier doping, providing a route to tailoring quantum many-body interactions in solid.

In bacteria, many small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs) associate with the RNA chaperone Hfq to modulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. Here, the authors identify global Hfq-mediated RNA-RNA interactions in Caulobacter crescentus and uncover a sponge RNA that antagonizes four homologous sRNAs in response to carbon starvation.

The lattice strain induced by surface ligands not only stabilizes black phase at room temperature but also enables full-range A-site tuning. Here, authors construct a detailed picture of temperature dependent behaviour of perovskite quantum dots by in situ spectroscopic and structural measurements.

Plasma proteomics plays a key role in advancing clinical research and biomarker discovery. Here, the authors show in a large MSCoreSys multicenter benchmark study that DIA outperforms DDA, delivering robust, precise, and reproducible label-free protein quantification across sites.

The exciton–phonon coupling (EXPC) affects the opto-electronic properties of atomically thin semiconductors. Here, the authors develop two-dimensional micro-spectroscopy to determine the EXPC of monolayer MoSe₂.

Cavity phonon-polaritons are a potential platform for controlling phonons. Here, the authors demonstrate multimode ultrastrong coupling between two optical phonon modes embedded in terahertz nanoslot cavities.

In a polaron, an electron and the lattice distortion that it induces in a crystal form a 'quasiparticle'. But a strong electric field can displace the two constituents with respect to each other, giving a glimpse at the polaron's internal dynamics.

Integrating complex multi-omics data for individual patient decision making can be challenging. Here, the authors develop Knowledge Connector as a decision support system to generate and document Molecular Tumor Board recommendations and support medical decision-making.

Quantum cascade lasers are only one of several applications that could take advantage of the discrete nature of the energy levels in semiconductor quantum dots. It is now shown that the relaxation time between levels is highly sensitive to their energy separation. This knowledge will be essential for the design and optimization of actual devices.

The band structure can strongly influence the light emission efficiency of semiconductors. Here, Signorello and colleagues demonstrate that a small uniaxial stress can change the band structure sufficiently to switch the luminescence of wurtzite GaAs nanowires on and off.

Progress on high-performance transistor employing perovskite channels has been limited to date. Here, Zhu et al. report hysteresis-free tin-based perovskite thin-film transistors with high hole mobility of 20 cm²V^–1S^–1, which can be integrated with commercial metal oxide transistors on a single chip.

In organic semiconductors, disorder-induced traps can alter the mobility of the charges and introduce noise in transport measurements. It is now shown that simple drop-casting of perfluoropolyether on top of organic single-crystals is an effective strategy for healing charge traps. This method allows the intrinsic transport properties of these materials to be recovered as well as suppressing noise in Hall effect measurements.

Juno spacecraft experienced unknown accelerations near the closest approach to Jupiter. Here, the authors show that Jupiter’s axially symmetric, north-south asymmetric gravity field measured by Juno is perturbed by a time-variable component, associated to internal oscillations.

Exciton scattering in perovskite is an important phenomenon dictating the optoelectronic performance. Here, the authors confirm the deformation potential scattering by charged defects, not by the non-polar optical phonons, dominates the excitons interband relaxation in 2D Sn-based perovskites.

Electron-boson coupling is crucial for understanding many-body systems, yet the role of electron-plasmon interactions remains underexplored. Here, the authors reveal plasmonic polarons in self-intercalated 1T-TiS₂ using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and high-resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy, demonstrating tunable bosonic energy scales and highlighting the potential of layered materials for advancing quantum material research.

Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) can modulate cortical oscillations and associated long-lasting cognitive and behavioral functions in humans. Here, the authors provide in vivo evidence in ferrets on the mechanism of how weak electric fields in tACS can entrain neuronal activity.

The authors study the light-driven dynamics of attractive and repulsive Fermi polarons in monolayer WSe₂. They show that the resonance shifts of Fermi polarons are valley-selective; the resonance shifts of attractive polarons increase with Fermi-sea density, while those of repulsive polarons decrease.

The efficiency of lead-halide perovskite photovoltaics is related to the tolerance of their band-edge charge-carriers to point defects. Here, the authors show that this tolerance can be extended to hot carriers depending on the defect energy level.

A cascadable all-optical NOT gate is a requirement for full-logic in optical computing. By introducing the concept of non-ground-state polariton amplification in organic semiconductor microcavities, the authors realized the operation of an all-optical cascadable universal gate.

Two-dimensional electron gases in SrTiO3 offer new insights into the physics of complex oxides and offer the potential for applications in electronics. Here, King et al. show how orbital ordering, spin–orbit coupling and many-body interactions collectively shape the complex properties of these confined electron systems.

Graphene plasmons hold potential for infrared optoelectronic devices, but the interaction with the substrate often degrades their quality. Here, the authors report the characterization of plasmons in suspended graphene with tunable suspension height, showing enhanced quality factors and propagation lengths at room temperature.

Tool making has been considered to be an attribute of the genus Homo; this paper reports 3.3-million-year-old stone tools and the early timing of these tools provides evidence that the making and use of stone tools by hominins occurred before the evolution of our own genus.

The pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae can adapt to diverse microenvironments in the human body. Here, De Bakker et al. study these adaptation responses, showing unusual sugar utilization and identifying FasR as a regulator of membrane composition and heat stress resistance.

Polarons are quasi-particles that emerge when impurity particle is mixed with the low-energy excitations of a medium. Here the authors study the case of atom-ion quantum mixtures and identify three separate bipolaronic regimes which can arise depending on the interaction range and strength.

Organometallic perovskite solar cells exhibit good efficiency but their photostability is still relatively poorly understood and controlled. Here the authors show that photo-degradation arises from the formation of light-activated meta-stable trap states, is reversible, and can be frozen at 0 °C.

Lead trihalide perovskites are notable for their excellent optoelectronic properties and uncommon phase behavior. Here, Kirschner et al. show that cesium lead bromide nanocrystals experience a reversible orthorhombic-to-cubic phase transition at moderate excitation fluences and become amorphous at higher fluences.

Magneto-optical spectroscopy shows that the dark exciton state in single formamidinium lead bromide perovskite nanocrystals is located below the bright exciton triplet. Slow bright-to-dark relaxation explains the intense brightness of the nanoparticles.

The octahedral unit is the fundamental and functional component of halide perovskites. The comprehensive and in-depth understanding of octahedral unit behaviour will facilitate modulation of structure at the atomic level, benefiting perovskite (opto)electronic devices with enhanced efficiency, stability and functionality.

Phase segregation in mixed halide perovskite is known to alter the optoelectronic properties, but how it affects charge carriers is not clear. Here, the authors use THz spectroscopy to reveal that high carrier mobilities are well preserved, while recombination dynamics is affected by charge funnelling upon segregation.

Seed formation requires a coordinated development of its three parts: embryo, endosperm and seed coat. The plant hormones brassinosteroids contribute this this coordination by influencing how different seed components perceive each other’s growth.

Superconductivity in doped SrTiO₃ near to a ferroelectric quantum critical point emerges due to a strong interaction driving the formation of Cooper pairs, the nature of which has remained elusive for several decades.  Here, the authors reveal that pairing is due to the exchange of longitudinal hybrid polar modes rather than transverse critical modes.

Rydberg excitons (condensed-matter analogues of hydrogen atoms) are shown to exist in single-crystal copper oxide with principal quantum numbers as large as n = 25 and giant wavefunctions with extensions of around two micrometres; this has implications for research in condensed-matter optics.