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Category: quantum physics – Page 944

Extremely Rare Quantum Spin Liquid Observed In Crystal Point

Quantum spin liquid, a very rare state of matter, has been observed in a new crystal especially designed with the hopes of using its unique quantum properties.

The crystal, an ytterbium compound with the formula YbMgGaO4, was first synthesized by Chinese scientists for the first time in 2015. Now, in a new study published in the journal Nature, researchers from the United States suggest that the new material can produce a quantum spin liquid when frozen to temperatures near absolute zero. At present, only a few materials are believed to possess these properties.

“Imagine a state of matter where this entanglement doesn’t involve two electrons but involves, three, five, 10 or 10 billion particles all in the same system,” Martin Mourigal, lead physicist of the study, said in a press release by Georgia Tech. “You can create a very, very exotic state of matter based on the fact that all these particles are entangled with each other. There are no individual particles anymore, but one huge electron ensemble acting collectively,” he added.

Conroy’s quantum warning: be ready

More folks warning others that you better be planning for a QC transformation as it is coming and is going to be probably the largest scale transformation the we have seen in the history of technology.

Former communications minister, Stephen Conroy has warned that Australian government technology decision makers need to start preparing for the development of quantum computing.

The former senator made the warning during a panel session at the Australian Computer Society’s Reimagination conference late last week. While still in its nascent development stages, the former minister for broadband communications and the digital economy said that it could have major national security implications.

“There’s one other issue that I wanted to put out there that’s coming as a disruptor and that’s quantum computing and how that’s going to affect things like national security and industrial competitiveness,” Mr Conroy said.

‘Spooky’ sightings in crystal point to extremely rare quantum spin liquid

Inside a new exotic crystal, physicist Martin Mourigal has observed strong indications of “spooky” action, and lots of it. The results of his experiments, if corroborated over time, would mean that the type of crystal is a rare new material that can house a quantum spin liquid.

Currently, only a small handful of materials are believed to possibly have these properties. This new crystal was synthesized for the first time only a year ago. Corroboration by other physicists of Mourigal’s newly produced experimental data could take a decade or longer.

Light Harvesting “Quantum Photocells” Herald A New Age in Solar Energy

In Brief

  • By combining the fields of quantum physics and biology, researchers have developed more efficient solar cells inspired by photosynthesis.
  • With current solar cells wasting about 80 percent of the energy absorbed, it will be interesting to see what future innovative approaches will allow in the pursuit toward universal clean energy.

Science once again reaches a milestone in technology by modeling it after nature. Researchers have devised a new type of highly efficient photocell by studying photosynthesis in plants.

Nathan Gabor, assistant professor for physics and astronomy at the University of California, Riverside, led research spurred by a simple question as to why plants are green. This eventually led to a quest to mimic plants’ ability to efficiently harvest energy from the Sun regardless of how erratic the sunlight is.

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