Ecosystem dynamics: Topological phases in biological systems
E-Mail Physicists at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have shown that topological phases could exist in biology, and in so doing they have identified a link between solid-state physics and biophysics. The concept of topological phase transitions has become an important topic in theoretical physics, and was first applied to the characterization of unusual states of matter in the 1980s. The quantum Hall effect (QHE) is one example where ideas drawn from topology have yielded new insights into initially puzzling phenomena. The QHE is observed in atomically thin films. When thes...
Source: eurekalert.org