Based on a 20-year field nitrogen addition experiment, this study demonstrates that long-term high nitrogen deposition does not reduce belowground carbon allocation in tropical forest plants; rather, it induces a physiological adaptation—upregulation of root exudation—to actively mobilize soil phosphorus, thereby sustaining productivity and offering a key mechanistic explanation for the persistence of tropical forest carbon sinks under chronic nitrogen enrichment.

X-rays allow professionals to diagnose injuries or ailments and peer inside suitcases at the airport, along with a variety of other applications. A team reporting in ACS Energy Letters has improved the glass screen that “translates” between X-rays and visible light, creating an X-ray system that produces high-resolution images with less radiation — it even works underwater. The screen can be molded into curved shapes, a feature that could one day lead to more comfortable mammograms. 

The Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research (MPIP) welcomes the first group of participants in the new Poly-ABROAD Visiting Student Program—an international collaboration with the Macromolecules Innovation Institute at Virginia Tech. From May through August, six doctoral candidates and students from the U.S. will complete a three-month research stay in Mainz, working on interdisciplinary projects related to biologically inspired and sustainable polymer materials and networking with other doctoral candidates from both Max Planck Institutes and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz at the “Max Planck Graduate Center with Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz.” The goal of this initiative, funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, is to strengthen scientific exchange in polymer and materials research and to integrate young talent into international networks.

Optical skyrmions are poised to revolutionize data transmission as robust information carriers, but their use has been hindered by narrow-band generation limits. Now, an international team in China and Singapore has unveiled an on-chip platform based on ferroelectric spherulites. This breakthrough device generates stable optical skyrmions across the entire visible spectrum, shattering previous bandwidth barriers. The advance paves the way for ultra-high-capacity optical communications and next-generation topological quantum light sources.

Researchers at the University of Rochester’s Institute of Optics engineered a new desalination method that produces drinking water from seawater without chemical additives. In a study in Light: Science & Applications, Professor Chunlei Guo and his collaborators describe how their solar-powered system uses specially engineered black metal to absorb sunlight. Its self-cleaning surface separates and collects salts, instead of dumping them as harmful brine waste, and from the salts, the system can extract lithium, a key material for rechargeable batteries. The approach could help address global water shortages and growing mineral demand.

A research team led by Prof. CHEN Ping from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy ofSciences (CAS) developed the world's first gas-solid hydride ion prototype battery, which uses hydrogen gas and a metal asthe electrodes. The battery not only powers electrical equipment, but also enable highly efficient hydrogen storage under ambient temperature and pressure through an innovative hydrogen-electricity co-storage mechanism.

Vortices in superconductors have so far been considered a disruption, as they can impair the superconducting properties. Researchers at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) proved now in experiment that magnetic vortices can be used as controllable quantum systems in certain materials. This means that a previously unwanted phenomenon is becoming a potential resource in quantum technologies, opening up new avenues for the development of quantum computers, highly sensitive sensor systems, and innovative approaches in materials research. The results have been published in Nature.  (DOI: 10.1038/s41586-026-10441-7)