Scientists have demonstrated an extraordinary form of quantum matter that combines two properties that seem incompatible. Known as a supersolid, this unusual state has the orderly structure of a crystal while also displaying the frictionless flow associated with a special kind of liquid. Even more remarkably, researchers have now observed this behavior at room temperature, eliminating the need for the extreme cooling traditionally used to investigate such phenomena.

The breakthrough was achieved by an international team from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw, the Military University of Technology (Poland), IBM Research Zurich, and the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS). Rather than relying on atoms cooled to temperatures near absolute zero, the scientists created a supersolid using particles that combine properties of light and matter.