How can tiny magnetic structures be precisely manipulated and controlled? These are the questions being explored by physicist Dr Maria Azhar. She has been awarded one of the prestigious Wilhelm and Else Heraeus Research Fellowships for her work.

The thinner an iron film, the more easily it can be demagnetised by a laser pulse. The key lies in the magnetic order at the material's interfaces. In the long term, these findings could contribute to the development of new technologies for magnetic data storage.

How do young stars shape the clouds from which they are born? A new 3D model developed by a team led by Dr Brandt Gaches reveals how their intense radiation drives the chemistry of stellar nurseries – helping astronomers better interpret observations from Space Telescopes.