In this week’s edition of The Prototype, we look at a quantum computing milestone for biotech, a new way to get forever chemicals out of the water supply and more.
Category: quantum physics – Page 48
New theory unifies quantum and relativistic effects in electron spin-lattice interactions
“God does not play dice.” This famous remark by Albert Einstein critiqued the probabilistic nature of quantum mechanics. Paradoxically, his theory of relativity has become an essential tool for understanding the behavior of electrons, the primary subjects of quantum mechanics.
Electrons are so minuscule that their behavior must be analyzed through quantum mechanics, yet they also move at speeds that require relativistic considerations. Due to the fundamentally different starting points of these two theories, achieving a unified, consistent description has posed significant challenges.
Now, a groundbreaking study published in Physical Review Letters offers a novel approach that bridges this divide, potentially reshaping the way we understand electron dynamics in solids.
Physicists discover new state of quantum matter
Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have discovered a new state of quantum matter. The state exists within a material that the team reports could lead to a new era of self-charging computers and ones capable of withstanding the challenges of deep space travel.
“It’s a new phase of matter, similar to how water can exist as liquid, ice or vapor,” said Luis A. Jauregui, professor of physics & astronomy at UC Irvine and corresponding author of the new paper in Physical Review Letters.
“It’s only been theoretically predicted—no one has ever measured it until now.”
Research reveals quantum topological potential in material
New research into topological phases of matter may spur advances in innovative quantum devices. As described in a new paper published in the journal Nature Communications, a research team including Los Alamos National Laboratory scientists used a novel strain engineering approach to convert the material hafnium pentatelluride (HfTe5) to a strong topological insulator phase, increasing its bulk electrical resistance while lowering it at the surface, a key to unlocking its quantum potential.
“I’m excited that our team was able to show that the elusive and much-sought-after topological surface states can be made to become a predominant electrical conduction pathway,” said Michael Pettes, scientist with the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies (CINT) at the Laboratory.
“This is promising for the development of types of quantum optoelectronic devices, dark matter detectors and topologically protected devices such as quantum computers. And the methodology we demonstrate is compatible for experimentation on other quantum materials.”
First direct images reveal atomic thermal vibrations in quantum materials
Researchers investigating atomic-scale phenomena impacting next-generation electronic and quantum devices have captured the first microscopy images of atomic thermal vibrations, revealing a new type of motion that could reshape the design of quantum technologies and ultrathin electronics.
Yichao Zhang, an assistant professor in the University of Maryland Department of Materials Science and Engineering, has developed an electron microscopy technique to directly image “moiré phasons”—a physical phenomenon that impacts superconductivity and heat conduction in two-dimensional materials for next-generation electronic and quantum devices.
A paper about the research, which documents images of the thermal vibration of individual atoms for the first time, has been published in the journal Science.
New method simplifies analysis of complex quantum systems with strong interactions
A research team led by TU Darmstadt has transformed a difficult problem in quantum physics into a much simpler version through innovative reformulation—without losing any important information. The scientists have thus developed a new method for better understanding and predicting difficult quantum mechanical systems. The study is published in Physical Review Letters.
This problem has long preoccupied quantum physics: How can systems consisting of many atoms, between which strong attractive forces act, be described mathematically? Already for about 10 particles, such systems are at the limits of current numerical methods.
It becomes particularly complicated when the atoms are exposed to an external force. However, this is the case in many experiments with cold atoms due to the way in which motion is restricted to one dimension, for example. Such systems of strongly interacting particles in one dimension were proposed in the 1960s and have since served as a reference problem in theoretical physics. So far, they have only been solved in a few special cases.
Theory-guided strategy expands the scope of measurable quantum interactions
A new theory-guided framework could help scientists probe the properties of new semiconductors for next-generation microelectronic devices, or discover materials that boost the performance of quantum computers.
Research to develop new or better materials typically involves investigating properties that can be reliably measured with existing lab equipment, but this represents just a fraction of the properties that scientists could potentially probe in principle. Some properties remain effectively “invisible” because they are too difficult to capture directly with existing methods.
Take electron–phonon interaction—this property plays a critical role in a material’s electrical, thermal, optical, and superconducting properties, but directly capturing it using existing techniques is notoriously challenging.