Airy beams are promising for applications requiring sharp focusing but have so far been realized in only two dimensions. Now their extension to three dimensions exhibits superior spatiotemporal focusing dynamics than Gaussian beams.

Tissue patterning is essential to development. Now it is shown that boundary cues can drive the patterning of embryonic tissue.

Previous observations of the valley Hall effect have been limited to the linear regime. Now a nonlinear version is demonstrated with a larger magnitude than in the linear case.

Atomic insulators come in two varieties: so-called unobstructed and obstructed types. The former are common and now scanning tunnelling microscopy experiments provide evidence for the latter.

Two distinct types of atomic insulator can be distinguished by the distribution of charges within the unit cell. Now, real-space imaging of WSe₂ shows that it is a so-called obstructed insulator.

It is known that placing asymmetric objects in a bacterial bath results in the net rotation of those objects. Now it is shown that the torque dipole of confined E.coli can rotate symmetric objects hydrodynamically.

Fifty years ago, the theoretical concept behind free-electron lasers was proposed. Since then, these light sources, operating from millimetre to X-ray wavelengths, have been indispensable for many areas of science.

Early radiography methods, such as conventional X-ray scans, gave physicians only limited information about what happens inside the body. Rachel Toth tells us how this case was cracked with computed tomography.

The information contained in the nomination process for the Nobel Prize highlights the ever-changing meaning of scientific recognition.

Quantum technologies could be transformative for healthcare. Alex Jones, Ian Gilmore and Peter Knight discuss the role of metrology in the adoption of these technologies.