<ul><li>New research has revealed that under extreme conditions, heat does not flow in the expected way, getting stuck between materials instead of passing through.</li><li>Physicists observed this phenomenon in a study where heat transfer between metal and plastic was studied at high temperatures and pressures, similar to those inside stars or fusion reactors.</li><li>Using a powerful laser, heat was blocked at the boundary between hot metal and cooler plastic due to a phenomenon called interfacial thermal resistance, where electrons carrying heat bounce back instead of passing through.</li><li>This discovery could have implications for fusion energy research and other advanced technologies, improving our understanding of how heat moves in extreme environments and aiding in the development of more efficient systems.</li></ul>

In extreme heat, energy doesn’t flow—it bounces back

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