Twitter: @PhysicsWorld
Site: physicsworld.com/l/audio
100 episodes
2021 to present
Average episode: 36 minutes
Open in Apple Podcasts • RSS
Categories: Interview-Style • Physics
Podcaster's summary: Physics World Weekly offers a unique insight into the latest news, breakthroughs and innovations from the global scientific community. Our award-winning journalists reveal what has captured their imaginations about the stories in the news this week, which might span anything from quantum physics and astronomy through to materials science, environmental research and policy, and biomedical science and technology. Find out more about the stories in this podcast by visiting the Physics World website. If you enjoy what you hear, then also check out our monthly podcast Physics World Stories, which takes a more in-depth look at a specific theme.
Episodes |
2023-Nov-30 • 37 minutes Why Alice & Bob are making cat qubits, IOP calls for action on net-zero target This podcast features a quantum entrepreneur and an energy expert |
2023-Nov-23 • 28 minutes Biomedical ethicist calls for rules governing human research in commercial spaceflight Experiments should minimize risks to astronauts and benefit society |
2023-Nov-16 • 31 minutes New telecoms satellites will degrade our view of the cosmos In this podcast, two astronomers discuss the implications of the BlueWalker 3 prototype |
2023-Nov-09 • 31 minutes New director looks to the future of the UK’s national labs Our podcast guest is Dave Newbold of the Science and Technology Facilities Council |
2023-Nov-02 • 29 minutes Celebrating the physics of the cosmos and 20 years of JCAP Three editors of the Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics are our podcast guests |
2023-Oct-26 • 40 minutes Pioneering the physics of adaptation, writing the history of quantum computing This episode of the Physics World Weekly podcast features two pioneers in their fields |
2023-Oct-19 • 33 minutes Quantum algorithms make clever use of noisy hardware Our podcast guest is Phasecraft’s Toby Cubitt |
2023-Oct-12 • 34 minutes Fusion industry has ambitious plans for 2035, rounding out this year’s Nobel prizes In this podcast we look at this year’s laureates from historical and societal perspectives |
2023-Oct-05 • 41 minutes Attosecond pulses and quantum dots: exploring the physics behind this year’s Nobel prizes We also chat about that embarrassing leak of the chemistry winners in this podcast |
2023-Sep-28 • 34 minutes Scanning the seabed with lasers could inform the search for extraterrestrial intelligence We also chat with an antimatter expert in this podcast |
2023-Sep-21 • 56 minutes Astrophysicist uses X-rays to explore the universe, heat pumps could prevent potholes This podcast features conversations with an astrophysicist and a civil engineer |
2023-Sep-14 • 53 minutes Challenging the space industry’s attitudes towards diversity, the ‘wild boar paradox’ explained In this podcast we meet members of Space Pride |
2023-Sep-07 • 30 minutes Quantum-safe cryptography: why we need it now This podcast features an expert on post-quantum cryptography |
2023-Aug-31 • 29 minutes Mathematics makes sense of the modern world This podcast features the mathematical biologist and author Kit Yates |
2023-Aug-24 • 42 minutes Metasurfaces simplify optical sensing systems This podcast features the CEO of a company that makes metalenses |
2023-Aug-17 • 48 minutes LK-99: meet a materials scientist who put the room-temperature superconductivity claim to the test In this podcast we also talk about Australia’s national quantum strategy |
2023-Aug-10 • 39 minutes Body-based units of measurement offer advantages over standardized systems, speaking of Oppenheimer This podcast looks at traditional measurement units around the world |
2023-Aug-03 • 20 minutes Award-winning company uses quantum sensors to develop a lightweight, wearable brain scanner Our podcast guests are from Cerca Magnetics and Quantum Exponential |
2023-Jul-27 • 23 minutes Quantum science and technology thrives when industry and governments join forces This podcast features Celia Merzbacher of the Quantum Economic Development Consortium |
2023-Jul-20 • 31 minutes Interdisciplinary researcher explores the many facets of decarbonization Our podcast guest is Emily Grubert of the University of Notre Dame |
2023-Jul-13 • 33 minutes Iconic Pink Floyd album cover provides a valuable lesson in optical physics This podcast features a physics teacher inspired by The Dark Side of the Moon |
2023-Jul-06 • 27 minutes Nuclear clocks: why an experiment at CERN brings them closer to reality This podcast features the nuclear physicist Sandro Kraemer |
2023-Jun-29 • 25 minutes Bioelectronic medicine aims to improve type-1 diabetes management Our podcast guest is the biomedical engineer Amparo Güemes González |
2023-Jun-22 • 25 minutes Sniffing out drug driving: why a breath test for cannabis is so hard to create An expert in nanoparticle metrology and neurotoxicology is our podcast guest |
2023-Jun-15 • 41 minutes Quantum woo: how to avoid mystical nonsense when doing physics outreach This podcast features the physicist, author and musician Philip Moriarty |
2023-Jun-08 • 30 minutes X-ray detectors in space: the challenges and rewards of observing the ‘hot and energetic universe’ This podcast features an instrument scientist working on ESA’s Athena mission |
2023-Jun-01 • 34 minutes Machine learning meets nanotechnology, award-winning implant regulates blood pressure This podcast features a computational scientist and a medical researcher |
2023-May-25 • 30 minutes FASER searches for dark photons at the LHC, and also finds neutrinos CERN’s Jamie Boyd talks about the ForwArd Search ExpeRiment |
2023-May-18 • 31 minutes Charting the evolution of scientific measurement over the past century and looking to the future We celebrate 100 years of Measurement Science and Technology |
2023-May-11 • 34 minutes Portable imaging system targets eye diseases, pondering the mysteries of dark matter Meet the new president of the Australian Institute of Physics and the CEO of a medical start-up |
2023-May-04 • 62 minutes Freeman Dyson: we explore the extraordinary life of the rebel physicist This podcast features David Kaiser, who has edited a new book on Freeman Dyson |
2023-Apr-27 • 30 minutes The folklore of the Milky Way and the future of scholarly books publishing This podcast features an astrophysicist and folklorist; and an academic publisher |
2023-Apr-20 • 57 minutes Quantum technologies promise a secure future for cryptography This podcast features an interview with Chris Schnabel of Qrypt |
2023-Apr-13 • 44 minutes Happy World Quantum Day, Fermilab advances quantum science and technology This podcast celebrates all things quantum |
2023-Apr-06 • 23 minutes Quantum research and development thrives in the defence sector This podcast features a quantum scientist at BAE Systems |
2023-Mar-30 • 27 minutes Quantum memories in space: experiments in Earth orbit push the limits of physics This podcast features two scientists from the German Aerospace Center |
2023-Mar-23 • 36 minutes From war-torn Damascus to success as an aviation engineer and pilot, a refugee’s journey Maya Ghazal talks about her successes in aeronautics despite facing prejudice in secondary education |
2023-Mar-16 • 31 minutes Nonlinear optics: we explore the science and its many applications This podcast features two experts in nonlinear optics |
2023-Mar-09 • 30 minutes Revamping undergraduate physics degrees with a focus on translational skills This podcast explores how graduates and employers would benefit from changing how physics is taught |
2023-Mar-02 • 42 minutes Machine learning joins the search for extraterrestrial intelligence Meet three astronomers who have identified potential technosignatures |
2023-Feb-23 • 44 minutes Creativity for scientists: how to build an innovation culture in your university, company or research group This podcast features Dennis Sherwood, a creativity consultant and author |
2023-Feb-16 • 35 minutes The chatbot revolution: how physicists are using large language models in academia This podcast features physicist and chatbot enthusiast Matt Hodgson |
2023-Feb-09 • 34 minutes Using radar to detect cosmic neutrinos in ice sheets, why Leo Szilard changed his mind on nuclear weapons This podcast features the particle physicist Steven Prohira |
2023-Feb-02 • 34 minutes Atomic clocks put Einstein and the Standard Model to the test, UK’s XFEL plans enter design phase In this podcast we chat about comparing atomic clocks and plans for a free electron laser |
2023-Jan-26 • 29 minutes Quantum technologies benefit from the bottom-up approach of synthetic chemistry This podcast features a chemist who creates molecular qubits |
2023-Jan-19 • 51 minutes Seeking cosmic particles using a super-pressure balloon, the physics of babies This podcast features the principal investigator of the EUSO-SPB2 mission |
2023-Jan-12 • 39 minutes New directions in environmental health and ecology, innovation in science and technology is waning This podcast features the editors-in-chief of two new environmental journals |
2023-Jan-05 • 30 minutes Nuclear waste: how environmental radiochemistry is improving storage and site remediation Katherine Morris talks about her research on the behaviour of radioactive contaminants |
2022-Dec-15 • 24 minutes How to deflect an asteroid: DART’s Andrew Cheng on the Physics World Breakthrough of the Year Mission scientist recalls one of the greatest moments of his life |
2022-Dec-08 • 32 minutes Top 10 Breakthroughs of 2022: we explore this year’s best physics research This podcast features a lively chat about the best physics results of 2022 |
2022-Dec-02 • 40 minutes The physics of car crashes and the winners of the Institute of Physics Business Awards In this podcast we celebrate innovation and learn how to thwart insurance cheats |
2022-Nov-24 • 40 minutes Synchrotrons and space telescopes: looking to the future of big science In this podcast we talk about light-source facilities and NASA’s plans for the future |
2022-Nov-17 • 39 minutes Meteorites and magnetostrophic mathematics reveal unsung scientific heroes of the past In this podcast we celebrate the applied mathematician Donna Elbert and a forgotten Black student who found a unique meteorite |
2022-Nov-10 • 34 minutes Artificial intelligence boosts multimessenger astronomy, ‘Quantum on the Clock’ winners In this podcast we look to the future of gravitational-wave astronomy and meet the winners of a video competition |
2022-Nov-03 • 46 minutes Finding commercial success in the burgeoning quantum-technology sector This podcast features three executives from quantum-computing companies |
2022-Oct-27 • 35 minutes Celebrating joy in #BlackInPhysics week, open-access publishing supports climate justice In this podcast we speak to two #BlackInPhysics week essayists and a climate justice researcher |
2022-Oct-20 • 42 minutes Sand battery stores renewable energy, the economics of domestic heat pumps and solar panels In this podcast we look at greener technologies for energy |
2022-Oct-13 • 31 minutes Nuclear forensics keeps tabs on radioactive materials, big science summer school launches in Spain In this podcast we chat about nuclear diamond batteries and materials for fusion reactors |
2022-Oct-06 • 48 minutes The weird and wonderful history of quantum entanglement that led to this year’s Nobel prize In this podcast we delve into the curious phenomenon at the heart of the 2022 prize |
2022-Sep-29 • 48 minutes Start-up company aims to build laser-driven particle accelerators In this podcast we also chat about physicists who have won non-physics Nobel prizes |
2022-Sep-22 • 47 minutes Materials science for women’s health, the rise of Chinese science, Schrödinger fails in Oxford In this podcast we also talk about a quantum sensor for electric vehicles |
2022-Sep-15 • 31 minutes Quantum computers could soon bring breakthroughs in nuclear physics In this podcast we explore how quantum computers have captured the imaginations of nuclear physicists |
2022-Sep-08 • 30 minutes Meet an engineer who blows things up to help preserve lives and property In this podcast we explore the physics of explosions |
2022-Sep-01 • 25 minutes Brain–computer interfaces offer hope to those with neurological disorders and injuries This podcast features the chief neuroscientist of company developing an operating system for BCIs |
2022-Aug-25 • 38 minutes UK’s Fraunhofer Centre for Applied Photonics bridges the gap between science and commercial research and development This podcast features three researchers at the Glasgow institute |
2022-Aug-18 • 33 minutes Roasting New Mexico chile with a solar concentrator, Diamond: The Game simulates research at a synchrotron lab In this podcast we learn how to cook with the Sun and how to create a scientific board game |
2022-Aug-11 • 35 minutes Building a science centre that will inspire local communities, musing over first lines in science books In this podcast we meet four people who aim to build a science centre in their city |
2022-Aug-04 • 29 minutes Artificial muscles offer a route to greener air conditioning, breakthroughs in semiconductor physics and hidden consciousness In this podcast we learn about a new refrigeration technology and chat about what’s new in physics |
2022-Jul-28 • 31 minutes Celebrating the life of the pioneering nuclear physicist Gertrude Goldhaber We speak with her family and archivist about Goldhaber’s scientific legacy |
2022-Jul-22 • 31 minutes Bountiful exotic hadrons at the LHC inspire new naming convention Two members of the LHCb collaboration talk about their success in finding tetraquarks and pentaquarks |
2022-Jul-14 • 26 minutes Projectile fusion offers new path to clean energy, quantum communications for alien civilizations In this podcast we meet the CEO and co-founder of First Light Fusion |
2022-Jul-07 • 44 minutes How we know climate change causes extreme weather, celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Higgs-boson discovery In this podcast we chat with an expert in climate change attribution |
2022-Jun-30 • 42 minutes How climate change is affecting human and natural systems, test your knowledge of artificial intelligence In this podcast we speak to a climate-change expert and take a quiz on AI in medical physics |
2022-Jun-23 • 37 minutes Prize-winning AI research, bringing machine learning tools into the radiotherapy clinic In this episode we talk about the use of artificial intelligence in healthcare |
2022-Jun-16 • 39 minutes Seeking the warm glow of the Unruh effect, reconfigurable hardware drives innovation in test and measurement We speak to an instrumentation entrepreneur and a particle dynamics expert |
2022-Jun-09 • 34 minutes Using social media to turn people on to physics, vacuum supplier sets science-based targets for greenhouse gas reductions We chat with Sara Fry from Atlas Copco – Vacuum Technique and Georgina Phillips of the Institute of Physics |
2022-Jun-02 • 33 minutes Quantum-computing company focuses on quantum simulation for industry, celebrating the International Year of Glass In this podcast we look at some practical applications of quantum computers |
2022-May-26 • 45 minutes Asking the big questions in the philosophy of physics and quantum biology In this podcast we speak to a molecular geneticist and a philosopher of science |
2022-May-19 • 35 minutes Black-hole physics and that iconic ‘shadow’ image, balloons and rockets probe the atmosphere’s acoustic duct We speak to a geophysicist and an astrophysicist in this week’s podcast |
2022-May-12 • 28 minutes Boosting the prospects of PhD students before and after graduation We meet students and staff at two Scottish centres for doctoral training |
2022-May-05 • 33 minutes Ukraine’s stained-glass heritage shines through Our coverage of the International Year of Glass takes an artistic turn |
2022-Apr-28 • 35 minutes Radiation detectors could help find ancient buildings and dinosaur bones In this podcast we also discover how an astronomy technique is improving biomedical imaging |
2022-Apr-21 • 25 minutes Electron rain is driven to Earth by whistler waves, carbon nanotubes encapsulate explosive nitrogen In this podcast we also chat about hunting meteorites |
2022-Apr-14 • 51 minutes Measuring gravity outdoors using a quantum gas, breakthroughs in materials processing and particle physics In this podcast we speak to physicists who have taken a delicate experiment outside |
2022-Apr-07 • 38 minutes Quantum computing meets machine learning, how motorsport could save the planet In this podcast we talk about motor-racing technologies and quantum machine learning |
2022-Mar-31 • 45 minutes Neutron capture destroys tumours from the inside, dead stars are born again, commercializing quantum sensors In this podcast we talk about radiotherapy, stellar physics and quantum businesses |
2022-Mar-24 • 39 minutes Solar geoengineering is a ‘fire extinguisher’ for global warming, shark’s skin inspires underwater vehicles In this podcast we chat with experts on hydrodynamics and climate-change mitigation |
2022-Mar-17 • 35 minutes Closest black hole is really a vampire star, augmented reality comes to prescription eyeglasses We chat about curved waveguide technology and a mysterious stellar system |
2022-Mar-10 • 39 minutes Laser-powered photonic circuits drive displays, double-anonymous peer review takes on gender bias, International Year of Glass hits its stride In this podcast we talk about the wonders of glass, removing biases in publishing and an award-winning start up |
2022-Mar-03 • 45 minutes Tracking space junk around the Moon, one teacher’s struggle to correct textbook errors In this episode we chat about mistakes in educational materials and lunar space junk |
2022-Feb-24 • 43 minutes Start-up simulates quantum photonics devices, a physicist’s experience of the mental-health system We talk to a physicist who has struggled with mental illness and the co-founders of Quantopticon |
2022-Feb-17 • 46 minutes Time crystals go large, challenges of quantum optimization, physics careers in 2022 In this podcast we chat about two fascinating quantum technologies |
2022-Feb-10 • 36 minutes Ion-based quantum computers could boost battery performance, how fuel cells are decarbonizing energy This podcast has an energy-storage theme |
2022-Feb-03 • 33 minutes Physics buildings: the good, the bad and the ugly; breaking the silence on bullying and harassment In this podcast we talk about documenting toxic workplaces and the architecture of physics |
2022-Jan-27 • 40 minutes Achieving success in research collaborations, celebrating the UN International Year of Glass This podcast looks at glass in physics and how to create a research dream team |
2022-Jan-20 • 34 minutes How the Web went global after arriving in Silicon Valley from CERN In this podcast we talk about how physicists and entrepreneurs changed the world |
2022-Jan-13 • 54 minutes The science and scientists of Don’t Look Up, low-cost optical technique is improving healthcare In this podcast we chat about photoplethysmography and a controversial Hollywood film |
2022-Jan-06 • 30 minutes Exploring Pluto’s changing atmosphere by chasing its shadow on Earth In this podcast we meet two siblings who have devoted their careers to studying the dwarf planet |
2021-Dec-16 • 26 minutes Meet the winners of the Physics World 2021 Breakthrough of the Year award In this podcast we talk about the prizewinning entanglement of macroscopic drumheads |
2021-Dec-09 • 35 minutes Top 10 Breakthroughs of 2021: a lively round-up of the year’s best physics results In this podcast we chat about our eclectic shortlist |