A ‘newcomer’ in the team
After a commissioning period, the benchtop SAXS-Cu apparatus of the MORPHEUS platform is now operational and ready for new adventures. This experimental setup includes: All the informations can be found …
Pt Atomically Dispersed in Black TiO2−x/CuxO with Chiral-Like Nanostructure for Visible-Light H2 Generation
Material design is one of the major driving forces to enhance the intrinsic light harvesting ability of a photocatalyst. Herein, the design of black TiO2−x/CuxO with chiral-like structures where Pt …
Evidence of a universal magnetic order, precursor of the superconducting phase in BaFe2X3 (X=S, Se) spin ladders
The understanding of the mechanism underlying the so-called unconventional high temperature superconductivity is one of the most difficult scientific challenges. Today, the most consensual approach suggests that the pairing of …
The art of packing elongated pentagonal bipyramids
Researchers have synthesized crystals of elongated gold bipyramids and have described their optimal packing in three-dimensional assemblies. This result, at the crossroads of chemistry and geometry, offers prospects for the …
A participative science program discovers an atypical cloud of 3000 km on Mars
Currently only amateur astronomers observe Mars in a global and continuous way when the planet is closer to the Earth (“opposition”). A part of these enthusiasts has been aggregated to …
Happy New Year 2022
The Matrix team is pleased to wish you a Happy New Year 2022! The laboratory’s greeting card is illustrated by a Fréedericksz transition in a biaxial smectic phase.
Liquid crystals: a playground for exploring physics
The teaching of experimental physics at the Master’s level has recently undergone a notable evolution thanks to the setting up of platforms equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, similar to that used …
A Fréedericksz-like transition in a biaxial smectic A phase
Liquid-crystal (LC) displays exploit a physical phenomenon called the Fréedericksz transition. This effect is only observed with “nematic” LCs which are fluids of rod-like molecules aligned in the same direction. …
Original structure and dynamics of water in a geo-inspired nanotube – SFN 2021 thesis prize
The study of ultra-confined fluids opens a very large field concerning nano-flows and it highlights the determining role of interfaces in new structures of liquids such as water. The development …
A new collective book on liquid crystals
The story of liquid crystals is that of transgression of frontiers and of breaking of common beliefs. Indeed, liquid crystals were discovered by a biochemist, Friedrich Reinitzer, who shared his …