Toggle light / dark theme

Get the latest international news and world events from around the world.

Log in for authorized contributors

Two paths, one flux: Trapped ions simulate Aharonov–Bohm interference in a lattice gauge theory

In a new Nature Physics study, researchers demonstrated the Aharonov-Bohm effect in a quantum simulation of a lattice gauge theory using a hybrid trapped-ion quantum computer.

Gauge theories describe how matter interacts through fields called gauge fields, which carry the electromagnetic, weak and strong forces. They form the basis of the Standard Model of particle physics. In lattice gauge theories, space is modeled as a grid with matter at the vertices and gauge fields on the links connecting them.

Quantum simulators offer a way to study these theories. However, most quantum simulations of the simplest version—the Z₂ lattice gauge theory—have been limited to one spatial dimension, where effects linked to magnetic flux cannot appear.

Drug Restores Liver Function in Aging Rats And Halves Levels of an Alzheimer’s-Linked Protein

The liver clears substances from our blood, but parts of this system become less efficient as we age.

Scientists have now restored some of that lost function in older rats with an experimental drug, halving blood levels of a protein fragment linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

The treatment also lowered cholesterol. After that second finding, the researchers discovered that the drug restored communication between neighboring liver cells.