Physics World Weekly Podcast
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
‘Galactic archaeologists’ share the 2026 Kavli Prize in Astrophysics
Laureate Amina Helmi and Per Barth Lilje of the prize committee are our guests
Inside EPSRC: Charlotte Deane on funding the future of UK physics
The executive chair of the UK funding agency is our podcast guest
Open data: the benefits and challenges of sharing a precious resource
Laura Feetham-Walker of IOP Publishing is our podcast guest
Thermodynamic computing: noise as a resource, not an enemy
Theoretical physicist Stephen Whitelam is our podcast guest
Paul Howarth: IOP president highlights the need to raise the profile of physics in society
Podcast interview also explores concerns about recent funding cuts to fundamental physics research in the UK
Near-oxymoronic requirements: the materials challenges of fusion energy
Jacob John of the UK Atomic Energy Authority is our podcast guest
Quantum sensors benefit from miniaturized ultrahigh vacuum
Florence Concepcion of Aquark Technologies is our podcast guest
Proteins on manuscript reveal how Renaissance medicines were made
Our podcast guest develops technologies for proteomics
Backing winners in deep tech: physicist and venture capitalist Alexandra Vidyuk
Our podcast guest began her career with a BSc in applied mathematics and physics
Biomedical optics play crucial roles across medicine
Medical physicist, inventor and entrepreneur Brian Pogue is our podcast guest
How IOP Publishing cut its carbon footprint by 36% since 2020
The company’s sustainability lead Liz Martin is our podcast guest
From the classroom to the committee room: Dave Robertson MP on politics and physics
British politician talks about the importance of physicists and physics education
Droplet scientists push the boundary between living and non-living matter
Systems governed by chemistry and physics, not biology, can behave in surprisingly lifelike ways, as Giorgio Volpe, Rob Malinowski and Joe Forth explain
Ultrasound system solves the ‘unsticking problem’ in biomedical research
Impulsonics’ “surround sound” technology frees-up living cells
LHCb upgrade: CERN collaboration responds to UK funding cut
LHCb spokesperson-elect Tim Gershon is our podcast guest
Quantum Systems Accelerator focuses on technologies for computing
Bert de Jong of Lawrence Berkeley National Lab is our podcast guest
Asteroid deflection: why we need to get it right the first time
Aerospace engineer Rahil Makadia on the danger of asteroid “keyholes”
Physics‑based simulations help diagnose and treat disease
Computer scientist Amanda Randles is our podcast guest
AI-based tool improves the quality of radiation therapy plans for cancer treatment
Medical physicist Todd McNutt is our podcast guest
Laser fusion: Focused Energy charts a course to commercial viability
Plasma physicist Debbie Callahan is our podcast guest
Quantum metrology at NPL: we explore the challenges and opportunities
This podcast features Tim Prior and John Devaney of the National Physical Laboratory
Quantum information theory sheds light on quantum gravity
Our podcast guest is Alex May of the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
Oscar-winning computer scientist on the physics of computer animation
CGI pioneer Pat Hanrahan is our podcast guest
How to make 2D metals: Guangyu Zhang on his team’s award-winning research
This podcast features a winner of the Physics World 2025 Breakthrough of the Year
Exploring this year’s best physics research in our Top 10 Breakthroughs of 2025
Lively chat about exoplanet weather, proton arc therapy, 2D metals and more
Building a quantum future using topological phases of matter and error correction
Tim Hsieh of the Perimeter Institute is our podcast guest
Quantum gravity: we explore spin foams and other potential solutions to this enduring challenge
Bianca Dittrich of the Perimeter Institute is our podcast guest
Talking physics with an alien civilization: what could we learn?
Do Aliens Speak Physics? author Daniel Whiteson is our podcast guest
Better coffee, easier parking and more: the fascinating physics of daily life
The author of Physics Around the Clock is our podcast guest
Designing better semiconductor chips: NP hard problems and forever chemicals
We report from the Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Unlocking the potential of 2D materials: graphene and much more
This podcast features Antonio Rossi at the Italian Institute of Technology
Quantum steampunk: we explore the art and science
Our podcast guests are a physicist and a sculptor
Quantum computing and AI join forces for particle physics
We explore how new computing technologies could guide future LHC experiments
Astronauts could soon benefit from dissolvable eye insert
A solution to microgravity-related vision problems is the topic of this week's podcast
From quantum curiosity to quantum computers: the 2025 Nobel Prize for Physics
Quantum physicist and entrepreneur Ilana Wisby on the legacy of this year’s laureates
The curious history of Nobel prizes: from lighthouses to gravitational waves
In this podcast we also make predictions for this year’s physics award
Imagining alien worlds: we explore the science and fiction of exoplanets
Keith Cooper chats about his new book in this podcast
Peer review in the age of artificial intelligence
Global survey of reviewers reveals a growing polarization about the use of AI
Juno: the spacecraft that is revolutionizing our understanding of Jupiter
PI Scott Bolton talks about the mission’s discoveries and endurance in this podcast
Artificial intelligence predicts future directions in quantum science
This podcast explains what happens when 66,000 research papers are used as training data
From a laser lab to the Economist: physicist Jason Palmer on his move to journalism
This podcast explores a career in science writing and broadcasting
Cosmic chemistry: Ewine van Dishoeck shares her zeal for astrochemistry
Our podcast guest is a Kavli Prize in Astrophysics laureate
Building a quantum powerhouse in the US Midwest
Our podcast guests are Preeti Chalsani and David Awschalom
Building a career from a passion for science communication
Our podcast guest is Kirsty McGhee of the quantum software company Qruise
Third age careers for physicists: writing and the arts beckon
Our podcast guest is Michael Albrow, scientist emeritus at Fermilab
From rabbits and foxes to the human gut microbiome, physics is helping us understand the natural world
A conversation about theoretical ecology with physicists Ada Altieri and Silvia De Monte
Oak Ridge’s Quantum Science Center takes a multidisciplinary approach to developing quantum materials and technologies
This podcast features Oak Ridge's Travis Humble
Inside ATLAS: Sara Alderweireldt explains how the CERN experiment homes in on new physics
This podcast also looks at the high-luminosity upgrade of the Large Hadron Collider
Making science careers more accessible to people with disabilities
This podcast features Francesca Doddato, co-author of “Towards a fully inclusive environment for disabled people in STEMM”
Reversible computing could help solve AI’s looming energy crisis
Hannah Earley of Vaire Computing is our podcast guest
Helgoland: leading scientists reflect on 100 years of quantum physics and look to the future
This podcast comes from the birthplace of modern quantum mechanics
Exploring careers in healthcare for physicists and engineers
Meet two early-career medical physicists in this podcast
Richard Bond and George Efstathiou: meet the astrophysicists who are shaping our understanding of the early universe
Our podcast guests are the 2025 Shaw Prize in Astronomy winners
Teaching quantum physics to everyone: pictures offer a new way of understanding
We talk about a new way of describing quantum mechanics
A Martian aurora, how the universe fades away, Heisenberg on holiday, physics of fake coins
Physics World editors talk about what’s new in physics
Quantum computing for artists, musicians and game designers
James Wootton of Moth Quantum is our podcast guest
Molecular engineering and battery recycling: developing new technologies in quantum, medicine and energy
Our podcast guests are Nadya Mason and Jeffrey Spangenberger
Ferenc Krausz explains how ultrashort laser pulses could help detect disease
Nobel laureate also talks about science education for children displaced by war
Driving skills and innovation in the UK’s semiconductor industry
This podcast features the director of Swansea’s Centre for Integrative Semiconductor Materials
Radiosurgery made easy: the role of the Gamma Knife in modern radiotherapy
This podcast is sponsored by Elekta
Non-invasive pressure sensor could revolutionize how brain injuries are diagnosed
Panicos Kyriacou of UK-based Crainio is our podcast guest
William Phillips: Nobel laureate talks about his passion for quantum physics
Laser-cooling expert looks to the future of quantum technologies
Microsoft’s Chetan Nayak on topological qubits, the physics of bigger splashes
Manu jumping and Majorana zero modes feature in this podcast
Artur Ekert explains how Albert Einstein and John Bell inspired quantum cryptography
Our podcast guest is the theoretical crypto-physicist Artur Ekert
Ionizing radiation: its biological impacts and how it is used to treat disease
Our podcast guests are NPL’s Ileana Silvestre Patallo and Ruth McLauchlan of the NHS
New materials for quantum technology, how ultrasound can help detect breast cancer
NPL’s Daniel Sarno and IIT Bombay’s Bhaskaran Muralidharan are our guests
Exploring CERN: Physics World visits the world’s leading particle-physics lab
Margaret Harris reports back about LHC upgrades, antimatter advances and future colliders
Jim Gates updates his theorist’s bucket list and surveys the damage being done to US science and society
The theoretical physicist and media personality is our podcast guest
Quantum superstars gather in Paris for the IYQ 2025 opening ceremony
In this podcast Physics World’s Matin Durrani describes the gala event
How the changing environment affects solar-panel efficiency: the Indian perspective
Climate scientist Sushovan Ghosh is our podcast guest
Mark Thomson looks to the future of CERN and particle physics
CERN’s next director-general is our podcast guest
Why electrochemistry lies at the heart of modern technology
Our podcast guest is Colm O’Dwyer, president of the Electrochemical Society
Ceryx Medical: company uses bioelectronics to coordinate the heart and lungs
Biomedical engineer Stuart Plant and physicist Ashok Chauhan are our podcast guests
Humanitarian engineering can improve cancer treatment in low- and middle-income countries
The medical physicists Eric Ford and Afua Yorke are our podcast guests
International Year of Quantum Science and Technology: our celebrations begin with a look at quantum networks and sensors
This podcast features quantum physicist Mete Atatüre of the University of Cambridge
The physics of ice cream: food scientist Douglas Goff talks about this remarkable material
Our podcast guest is a leading expert on frozen desserts
Mikhail Lukin and Dolev Bluvstein explain how they used trapped atoms to create 48 logical qubits
Meet two winners of the Physics World 2024 Breakthrough of the Year
Hartmut Neven talks about Google Quantum AI’s breakthrough in quantum error correction
Meet a winner of the Physics World 2024 Breakthrough of the Year
Exploring this year’s best physics research in our Top 10 Breakthroughs of 2024
Lively chat about antimatter, medical physics, quantum computing, lasers and more
How the UK Metamaterials Network supports scientific and commercial innovation
Network leads Alastair Hibbins and Claire Dancer are our podcast guests
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