The molecules of just about every other substance move closer together when they freeze. In ice, water molecules are arranged in a repeating pattern that gives ice its crystal structure. Even though ...

However, unlike a traditional crystal, which repeats a pattern across the physical dimension of space, a time crystal repeats a pattern of motion, rearranging its atoms in the same way over time ...

The new phase comes in the form of a pattern of electron spins—half of ... or "hot," hence the nickname of "half-ice, half-fire" given to it by the researchers. "Finding new states with exotic ...