编译|冯维维

Nature, 3 September 2026, Volume 657 Issue 8130

《自然》2026年9月3日，第657卷，8130期

物理学Physics

Observation of conformal field theory spectra in a quantum simulator

量子模拟器中共形场论能谱的实验观测

▲ 作者：Xiangkai Sun  (孙向恺), Yuan Le  (乐媛), Stephen Naus, Richard Bing-Shiun Tsai, Lewis R. B. Picard, Sara Murciano, Michael Knap, Jason Alicea & Manuel Endres 

▲链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10904-x

▲摘要：

共形场论（CFT）在高能物理、统计力学以及凝聚态物理中占据重要地位。例如，CFT支配着调谐至量子相变点的系统所表现出的普适性性质，包括其纠缠特性、关联函数和低能激发谱。然而，CFT所预言的丰富结构中，仍有很大一部分未在实验中被观测到。

研究者直接观测了量子相变点处涌现出的共形场论的能级激发谱——恢复了底层场论所特有的普适能级比。具体而言，他们开发并实现了一种调制技术，以解析里德伯原子链的有限尺寸能谱，该链可被分别调节至由伊辛CFT或三临界伊辛CFT描述的量子相变点。

他们还利用局域控制手段区分激发在反射操作下的不同宇称，并在三临界伊辛链中，通过改变边界条件诱导出不同CFT能谱之间的跃迁。此外，通过该调制技术的一个变体，他们还研究了临界系统的动力学结构因子，该因子与底层伊辛共形场论的关联函数密切相关。研究不仅在一台量子模拟器上探测了CFT特征的涌现，还为未来实验中诊断先验未知的普适性类提供了一种技术手段。

▲ Abstract：

Conformal field theories (CFTs) feature prominently in high-energy physics, statistical mechanics and condensed matter. For example, CFTs govern emergent universal properties of systems tuned to quantum phase transitions, including their entanglement, correlations and low-energy excitation spectra. Much of the rich structure predicted by CFTs nevertheless remains unobserved in experiment. Here we directly observe the energy excitation spectra of emergent CFTs at quantum phase transitions—recovering universal energy ratios characteristic of the underlying field theories. Specifically, we develop and implement a modulation technique to resolve the finite-size spectra of a Rydberg chain, variably tuned to quantum phase transitions described by either Ising or tricritical Ising CFTs. We also use local control to distinguish parities of excitations under reflection and, in the tricritical Ising chain, to induce transitions between distinct CFT spectra associated with changing boundary conditions. By using a variant of the modulation technique, we furthermore study the dynamical structure factor of the critical system, which is closely related to the correlation of an underlying Ising conformal field. Our work not only probes the emergence of CFT features in a quantum simulator but also provides a technique for diagnosing a priori unknown universality classes in future experiments.

Atomic-scale double-slit interferometry with a focused electron probe

原子尺度聚焦电子探针双缝干涉实验

▲ 作者：Koudai Tabata, Takehito Seki, Toma Susi, Ryo Ishikawa & Naoya Shibata 

▲链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10914-9

▲摘要：

自杨氏使用光的双缝干涉实验以来，双缝干涉实验一直是波粒二象性的典范演示。如今，它们构成了现代电子、中子、原子和分子干涉仪的基础，其条纹可见度和相位编码了关于波和衍射物体的定量信息。将这一原理扩展到原子尺度，将能直接、局域地获取微观结构和动力学信息，但此前尚未得到探索。

作者展示了双缝干涉可以在晶体内部原子尺度上实现。利用扫描透射电子显微镜，他们演示了用聚焦电子束产生干涉条纹，该电子束离域在间距为1.36的两个相邻硅[110]原子柱上。在有限温度下，这两个原子“狭缝”剧烈振动，将其运动印刻在条纹上。条纹在300K至900K温度范围内持续存在，表明只有一部分声子模式会降低可见度；相邻原子间的关联热振动保持了相干性，否则独立运动会将其破坏。

对这种保持的可见度进行定量分析，可以直接实验获取一对原子柱之间的振动关联。这些关联映射到特定原子键的各向异性刚度，从而能够获取影响热输运的低能声子动力学。通过将晶体重新构想为原子尺度干涉仪，该平台能够直接可视化局域原子排列及其关联动力学，为在单键水平上研究晶格动力学开辟了途径。

▲ Abstract：

Since Young’s original work with light1, double-slit interference experiments have been paradigmatic demonstrations of wave–particle duality2,3,4,5,6. They now underpin modern electron, neutron, atom and molecule interferometers, whose fringe visibility and phase encode quantitative information about both the wave and the diffracting object. Extending this to atomic length scales would offer direct, local access to microscopic structure and dynamics, but has remained unexplored. Here we show that double-slit interferometry can be realized at atomic scales inside a crystal. Using scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), we demonstrate the generation of interference fringes with a focused electron beam that is delocalized over two adjacent Si[110] atomic columns separated by 1.36. At finite temperature, these two atomic ‘slits’ vibrate strongly, imprinting their motion on the fringes. The fringes persist from 300 K to 900 K, indicating that only a subset of phonon modes degrades visibility; correlated thermal vibrations between neighbouring atoms preserve coherence that independent motion would otherwise destroy. Quantitative analysis of this preserved visibility provides direct experimental access to vibrational correlations between a pair of atomic columns. These correlations map to the anisotropic stiffness of the specific atomic bond, giving access to the low-energy phonon dynamics that affect thermal transport. By recasting crystals as atomic-scale interferometers, this platform enables direct visualization of local atomic arrangements and their correlated dynamics, opening routes to examine lattice dynamics at the single-bond level.

生物化学BioChemistry

Pyridoxal photoenzymes for asymmetric radical–radical cross-couplings

吡哆醛光酶用于不对称自由基-自由基交叉偶联

▲ 作者：Cole C. Sorensen, Suhao Wang, Yao Ouyang, Saim Waheed, Claire G. Page, Greg Mann, Simon Allmendinger & Todd K. Hyster 

▲链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10930-9

▲摘要：

非天然光酶已经能够实现大量不对称成键反应，而这些反应在小分子催化中要么颇具挑战，要么目前尚无法实现。这类反应要求酶所含的辅因子在可见光区有强吸收，且具有足够长的激发态寿命，例如黄素和烟酰胺辅因子。然而，存在一个相当大的发色辅因子“暗空间”，其中尚无已知的光酶活性被表征。

增进对“暗空间”中辅因子光物理性质的了解，将能通过在具有不同反应性和选择性的酶类中获取新的激发态中间体，从而扩展光酶所能构建的化学键类型。研究者利用激发态醌类中间体作为强效单电子还原剂，将5′-磷酸吡哆醛确立为一种光酶辅因子。他们通过使用非天然苄胺底物，并借助外源光敏剂的荧光共振能量转移机制来获取醌类激发态，从而克服了天然醌类中间体较差的光物理性质。

这种氧化还原中性策略，通过在酶活性位点内同时生成并局域化一个自由基对，实现了苄胺与还原性自由基前体之间的不对称自由基—自由基交叉偶联——从而消除了对自由基分类和持久自由基效应的需求，克服了该反应通常面临的挑战。研究所发现的PLP光激发中间体，极大地拓展了PLP依赖型酶实现有价值的成键反应的潜在途径。

▲ Abstract：

Non-native photoenzymes have enabled myriad asymmetric bond-forming events that are otherwise challenging or at present impossible with small-molecule catalysis1,2. These reactions require enzymes with cofactors that are strong absorbers in the visible region with reasonably long-lived excited states, such as flavin and nicotinamide. However, there exists a substantial chromophoric cofactor ‘dark space’ in which no known photoenzymatic activity has been characterized1. Increased knowledge of the photophysics of the cofactors in the ‘dark space’ would increase the types of bonds that photoenzymes can form by accessing new excited-state intermediates in enzyme classes with divergent reactivities and selectivities. Here, we establish pyridoxal 5′-phosphate (PLP) as a photoenzymatic cofactor by leveraging the excited-state quinonoid intermediate as a potent single-electron reductant. We overcome the poor photophysical properties of the native quinonoid intermediate by using non-native benzylamine substrates and exploiting F?rster resonance energy transfer mechanism from an exogenous photosensitizer to access the quinonoid excited state. This redox neutral approach enables an asymmetric radical–radical cross-coupling between benzylamines and reductive radical precursors through concomitant generation and localization of a radical pair in an enzyme active site—overcoming the typical challenges associated with this reaction by removing the necessity for radical sorting and the persistent radical effect3. The emergent photoexcited intermediates of PLP identified in this work greatly expand the potential avenues for valuable bond-forming events by PLP-dependent enzymes.

Luminescent-reaction-enabled super-resolution imaging

发光反应赋能超分辨成像

▲ 作者：Wenxin Zhu  (朱文鑫), Chi Zhang  (张弛), Jiahui Gui  (桂家辉), Yibo Yang  (杨熠博), Yuxin Wan  (万宇欣), Xin Wang  (王鑫), Liying Qu  (曲丽颖), Ao Guo  (郭奡), Ziqing Zhang  (张紫晴), Zhenqian Han  (韩镇谦), Weisong Zhao  (赵唯淞) & Jiandong Feng  (冯建东) 

▲链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10889-7

▲摘要：

通过突破光学衍射极限，超分辨荧光显微镜在光激发发光框架下推进了人们对生物复杂性的理解。使用外部光激发仍是影响基于荧光的成像能力及活细胞兼容性的关键因素。另一种选择是反应激发发光，如电化学发光（ECL）、化学发光（CL）和生物发光（BL），它们提供了一个化学定义的工具箱，可实现从超灵敏分析到生物兼容成像等不同的成像优势。

尽管传统的发光反应赋能成像具有免光激发和高灵敏度的特点，但由于光子预算不足，其在时空分辨率上存在根本性限制。在此，研究者开发了一种基于化学的超分辨成像框架——通过熵加权相关结合反卷积实现发光反应赋能超分辨成像（RIED）。作为一个实验—计算融合的概念，RIED引入了一种时空记录策略，以挖掘发光反应赋能成像中特定的信息内容；这些信息被高效收集并通过适应反应驱动光子统计的重建策略进行计算，从而实现超分辨。

他们实现了细胞内细胞器的超分辨ECL、CL和BL成像，分辨率达到约100 纳米。该方法被用于表面蛋白的高灵敏成像，以及线粒体转移动力学的41小时超长时程连续超分辨活细胞成像。该工作建立了一类新兴的、化学赋能的无激光超分辨显微镜，扩展了生物成像的多功能性。

▲ Abstract：

By breaking the optical diffraction limit, super-resolution fluorescence microscopy has advanced our understanding of biological complexity under the framework of light-excited luminescence1. The use of external light excitation remains a key factor that shapes the imaging capabilities and live-cell compatibility of fluorescence-based approaches2. An alternative is the reaction-excited luminescence, such as electrochemiluminescence (ECL)3, chemiluminescence (CL)4 and bioluminescence (BL)5, providing a chemically defined toolbox for enabling different imaging merits, from ultrasensitive analysis6,7 to biocompatible imaging8,9. Despite its light-free excitation and high sensitivity, conventional luminescent-reaction-enabled imaging is fundamentally limited in spatiotemporal resolution owing to low photon budget10,11. Here we develop a chemistry-based super-resolution imaging framework, luminescent-reaction-enabled super-resolution imaging via entropy-weighted correlation combined with deconvolution (RIED). As an experimental–computational concept, RIED introduces a spatiotemporal recording strategy to uncover specific luminescent-reaction-enabled imaging information content, which is efficiently collected and computed to achieve super resolution using a reconstruction strategy adapted to reaction-driven photon statistics. We achieve super-resolution ECL, CL and BL imaging of intracellular organelles, attaining approximately 100 nm resolution. This approach is used for highly sensitive imaging of surface proteins and 41-h ultralong-term continuous super-resolution live-cell imaging of mitochondrial transfer dynamics. Our work establishes an emerging class of chemistry-enabled, laser-free super-resolution microscopy with expanded biological imaging versatilities.

生态学和可持续发展

Ecology & sustainability

Food systems transformation would reshape global agriculture

食品体系转型将重塑全球农业

▲ 作者：Matthew Gibson, Marina Sundiang, Daniel Mason-D’Croz, Thais Diniz Oliveira, Felicitas Beier, Lauren Benavidez, Astrid Bos, Maksym Chepeliev, Jonathan Doelman, Shahnila Dunston, Shinichiro Fujimori, Tomoko Hasegawa, Petr Havlik, Jordan Hristov, Jonas J?germeyr, Marta Kozicka, Marijke Kuiper, Page Kyle, Thijs de Lange, Benjamin Leon Bodirsky, Hermann Lotze-Campen, Hermen Luchtenbelt, David Meng-Chuen Chen, Abhijeet Mishra, Mario Herrero

▲链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10775-2

▲摘要：

食品体系是导致地球边界被突破的主要因素之一，而低质量饮食是全球关键死亡风险。预计的人口增长和收入增加可能加剧这些挑战。为此，呼吁向健康且可持续的食品体系转型。然而，这种转型对农业影响的规模和分布尚有待深入探索。

研究表明，到2050年，食品体系向健康饮食、提高生产率和减少一半食物浪费的转型，将导致全球农业发生根本性重组，其中一些方面将打破历史趋势。使用由十个全球经济模型组成的多模型集合进行的情景模拟显示，与2020年水平相比，农业用地中位数减少6%（范围+1%至-26%）。

到2050年，农业产量将比“一切照旧”情景的预测低17%（范围-2%至-32%），从经济角度看，这部分产值将减少1.6万亿美元（26%）（范围+8%至-58%）。其中，畜牧产值将比当前2050年预测值大幅降低（-49%至-83%），而蔬菜、水果、坚果和豆类的产值将增加23%（范围-33%至+106%）。结果取决于为实现转型情景所假设的政策。

研究者强调，食品政策应发挥更积极的作用，既要考虑此类转型带来的效益（改善人口健康、减轻环境压力），也要应对其影响所带来的政治经济问题。

▲ Abstract：

Food systems are a major contributor to exceeding planetary boundaries1,2,3 and poor quality diets are a key mortality risk globally4. Projected population and income growth could exacerbate these challenges5. In response, there are calls for transformation towards healthy and sustainable food systems6,7,8. However, the scale and distribution of the impacts of this transformation on agriculture are underexplored. Here we show that, by 2050, the transformation of food systems towards healthy diets (adoption of the EAT–Lancet reference diet), improved productivity and halving of food waste results in a fundamental restructuring of global agriculture, aspects of which break with historical trends. Scenario simulations using a multimodel ensemble of ten global economic models show a 6% median decrease in agricultural land (+1% to -26%) compared with 2020 levels. By 2050, agricultural production would be 17% lower than business-as-usual projections (-2% to -32%) and, economically, the value of this production is US$1.6 trillion (26%) lower (+8% to -58%). Within this, the value of livestock production would be substantially lower than current 2050 projections (-49% to -83%), while vegetable, fruit, nut and legume production value would increase by 23% (-33% to +106%). Results are dependent on the assumed policies to achieve the transformation scenario. We highlight a more active role for food policy to consider the benefits of such a transformation (improved population health and reduced environmental pressures) and navigate the political economy of its impacts.

Species intraspecific variation drives tropical forest drought resistance

物种种内变异驱动热带森林抗旱性

▲ 作者：Chris M. Smith-Martin, Robert Muscarella, Timothy J. Brodribb & María Uriarte  

▲链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10870-4

▲摘要：

严重干旱正日益加剧树木死亡，然而，由于缺乏对物种内抗旱性变异的了解，预测森林恢复力仍受到限制。尽管栓塞抗性等水力性状对干旱生存至关重要，但主要在温带地区开展的研究报告了很少的种内变异，这意味着树种适应潜力的进化存在约束。

研究者利用一个包含沿波多黎各四倍降水量梯度（每年1000至4000毫米）采集的、代表18个物种的290棵树木的11个水力性状数据集，对这一假设进行了检验。他们发现，大量的种内变异，连同物种更替，共同驱动了沿降水梯度的抗旱性协同变化。大多数物种在较干燥森林中表现出更强的栓塞抗性和更宽的气孔安全边际，这表明热带树木存在相当水平的种内变异，以及适应日益干旱条件的一种机制。

缺乏这种性状变异性的物种在未来更干燥气候下可能高度脆弱。将种间和种内性状变异纳入预测模型，将提升我们预测森林应对加剧干旱的恢复力的能力。

▲ Abstract：

Severe droughts are increasingly driving tree mortality, yet predicting forest resilience remains limited by a lack of understanding of within-species variation in drought resistance. Although hydraulic traits such as embolism resistance are central to drought survival, studies conducted primarily in temperate regions have reported little intraspecific variation, implying that there are evolutionary constraints in the adaptive potential of tree species. Here we test this assumption using a dataset comprising 11 hydraulic traits for 290 trees representing 18 species collected along Puerto Rico’s fourfold rainfall gradient (1,000 to 4,000 mm per year). We find that substantial intraspecific variation, together with species turnover, drives coordinated shifts in drought resistance across the gradient. Most species exhibit substantially more embolism resistance and wider stomatal safety margins in drier forests, demonstrating a considerable level of intraspecific variation in tropical trees and a mechanism for adaptation to increasingly dry conditions. Species lacking such trait variability may be highly vulnerable under a future drier climate. Incorporating both interspecific and intraspecific trait variation into predictive models will advance our ability to forecast forest resilience to intensifying droughts.