EPJ B Highlight - Studying the pseudogap in superconducting cuprate materials

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Published on 06 May 2022

Despite being vital to the study of superconductivity in cuprate materials the physical origins of the pseudogap remain a mystery.

Over three decades since the discovery of high-temperature superconductivity in ceramic cuprate materials, investigating the electronic states in cuprate materials to advance the understanding of the superconducting phase and related phenomena has become of incredible importance.

In a new paper published in the EPJ B, Ernesto Raposo from the Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil, and his co-authors, look at one of the essential physical properties of cuprate superconducting compounds, the pseudogap, which describes a state where the Fermi surface of a material possesses a partial energy gap.

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EPJ B Highlight - Thin quantum wires work better with less insulating coatings

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Published on 19 April 2022

New theoretical analysis considers cases where the electrons are allowed to exist beyond the boundaries of semiconducting quantum wires – with important implications for their performance.

Thin, semiconducting wires have attracted much recent attention in physics – both in experiments and theoretical analysis. Named ‘quantum wires,’ these structures are often coated in insulating materials, and several previous studies have now explored how the mismatch between the insulating properties of both materials can influence their performance. Through new analysis published in EPJ B, Nguyen Nhu Dat and Nguyen Thi Thuc Hien at Duy Tan University, Vietnam, show that thinner wires with less insulating coatings can improve the mobility of the electrons they carry.

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EPJ B Highlight - Simulating realistic lane changes in two-lane traffic

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Published on 19 April 2022

A new approach to simulating traffic considers how drivers will change lanes at different rates depending on the density of traffic surrounding them

Many urban areas worldwide are now rapidly expanding, often with major negative impacts on traffic congestion. To address this issue, researchers have constructed models aiming to simulate the flow of traffic – but so far, they haven’t widely considered the impacts of drivers changing lanes. In a new study published in EPJ B, Nikita Madaan and Sapna Sharma at the Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, India, show how the lane-changing behaviours observed in real drivers can be incorporated into simulations of two-lane roads.

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EPJ B Highlight - Ranking nanodevice functionality methods

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Published on 08 April 2022

Examining the charge transfer influence of three charge control methods and producing a hierarchy promises important practical applications in nanodevices.

As the demand for nanodevices grows so too does the need to improve the functionality of such devices, which is vulnerable to changes in the charge distribution, energy levels or conformation. Hence the desire to assess the three current charge control methods: gating by electro-chemicals, doping by pendant groups and doping by annealed motifs.

A new paper published in EPJ B authored by Zainelabideen Yousif Mijbil, from the College of Science, Al-Qasim Green University, Al-Qasim Town, Babylon Province, Iraq, aims to prioritize and rank nano-device functionality methods according to their potential impact as well as justifying the reason for such an influence-based hierarchy.

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EPJ B Highlight - A novel computing approach to recognising chaos

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Published on 05 April 2022

Chaos isn’t always harmful to technology, in fact, it can have several useful applications if it can be detected and identified.

Chaos and its chaotic dynamics are prevalent throughout nature and through manufactured devices and technology. Though chaos is usually considered a negative, something to be removed from systems to ensure their optimal operation, there are circumstances in which chaos can be a benefit and can even have important applications. Hence a growing interest in the detection and classification of chaos in systems.

A new paper published in EPJ B authored by Dagobert Wenkack Liedji and Jimmi Hervé Talla Mbé of the Research unit of Condensed Matter, Electronics and Signal Processing, Department of Physics, University of Dschang, Cameroon, and Godpromesse Kenné, from Laboratoire d’ Automatique et d’Informatique Appliquée, Department of Electrical Engineering, IUT-FV Bandjoun, University of Dschang, Cameroon, proposes using the single nonlinear node delay-based reservoir computer to identify chaotic dynamics.

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EPJ B Highlight - Investigating newly synthesised thallium compounds for optoelectronic devices

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Published on 01 April 2022

The burgeoning field of optoelectronic devices is driving the development of new alkali metal-based chalcogenides with qualities that have to be robustly investigated.

The need for efficient optoelectronic devices is growing and hand-in-hand so too is the challenge of discovering new semiconductors with valuable properties. This has spurred significant research in the synthesis and characterization of new alkali metal-based (AM) chalcogenides involving copper, silver and alkali metal with valuable properties like flexibility, high thermal stability, semiconductivity, photovoltaic effects.

Inspired by the growing demand for new optimum semiconducting materials, a new paper published in EPJ B authored by Abdelmadjid Bouhemadou, Laboratory for Developing New Materials and their Characterizations, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Ferhat Abbas Setif, Algeria and his co-authors, investigated in detail the structural, elastic, electronic and optical properties of two newly synthesized compounds, namely Tl₂CdGeSe₄ and Tl₂CdSnSe₄.

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EPJ B Colloquium - Ballistic annihilation in one dimension: a critical review

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Published on 09 February 2022

In a new Colloquium published in EPJB, S. Biswas (Universidad de Guadalajara, Mexico) and F. Leyvraz (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico) review several related systems. In the simplest, all particles move in a straight line at constant velocity in one dimension, and upon meeting, irreversibly react to an inert species. The simplest approach to such systems involves the “law of mass action” which leads, for large times, to a concentration decay of 1/t. The model described above for which all particles move with two possible distinct velocities only, has been solved exactly. In this case, it is shown that the concentration decay goes as t^-1/2, so that the law of mass action is strongly violated.

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EPJ B Highlight - Understanding changes in a non-equilibrium economy

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Published on 25 January 2022

A novel theory can link abrupt, non-equilibrium changes to the state of the economy to a central principle of dynamics and thermodynamics

Equilibrium is a fundamental concept in economics: describing situations where the many interacting variables governing the state of the economy are static and perfectly balanced. Yet in reality, the inherent uncertainty and randomness associated with these variables, combined with the fragility of economists’ expectations, mean that the economy can never really be in true equilibrium. In new research published in EPJ B, a research team led by Kun Zhang from the Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Jin Wang at State University of New York at Stony Brook, use new mathematical theories to capture the economy’s true non-equilibrium nature and to show how it can be quantified.

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EPJ B - New Editorial Board Member appointments

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Published on 12 August 2021

The Publishers and Editors-in-Chief of EPJB: Condensed Matter and Complex Systems are delighted to announce the appointment of three new members of the Editorial Board: Prof Veronica Barone of Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, USA; Prof Sanghamitra Neogiof the University of Colorado, Boulder, USA; and Dr Philipp Hövel (starting September 1st), of the School of Mathematical Sciences, University College Cork, Ireland.

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EPJ B Colloquium - Particles, conformal invariance and criticality in pure and disordered systems

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Published on 23 March 2021

The two-dimensional case occupies a special position in the theory of critical phenomena due to the exact results provided by lattice solutions and, directly in the continuum, by the infinite-dimensional character of the conformal algebra. However, some sectors of the theory, and most notably criticality in systems with quenched disorder and short range interactions, have appeared out of reach of exact methods and lacked the insight coming from analytical solutions.

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