Home > News > Atoms or molecules? Both!
July 20th, 2007
Atoms or molecules? Both!
Abstract:
To be at the same time black and white, upwards and downwards directed- only the quantum particles belonging to the nanocosmos are able to take on two properties that are incompatible according to the laws of classical physics. Scientists around Prof. Gerhard Rempe at Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching have now succeeded in observing a quantum state that represents a pure superposition of atoms and molecules. In Physical Review Letters ("Atom-molecule Rabi oscillations in a Mott insulator") they report on experiments with pairs of Rubidium atoms in an optical lattice. Instead of being either two single atoms or two-atomic bound molecules the pairs oscillate between both states.
The scientists have counted up to 29 of these so-called Rabi-oscillation cycles. While oscillating between the atomic and the molecular state the Rubidium pairs are at one point in both states with equal probability. Quantum particles being in such an ambiguous state provide the ideal properties for storing information in future quantum computers, i.e. they are the ideal candidates to act as quantum bits. Furthermore future precision measurements of the oscillation frequency may be a sensitive test for drifts of fundamental natural constants.
Source:
nanowerk.com
Bookmark:
| Related News Press |
Discoveries
Quantum computer improves AI predictions April 17th, 2026
Flexible sensor gains sensitivity under pressure April 17th, 2026
A reusable chip for particulate matter sensing April 17th, 2026
Detecting vibrational quantum beating in the predissociation dynamics of SF6 using time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy April 17th, 2026
Interviews/Book Reviews/Essays/Reports/Podcasts/Journals/White papers/Posters
A fundamentally new therapeutic approach to cystic fibrosis: Nanobody repairs cellular defect April 17th, 2026
UC Irvine physicists discover method to reverse ‘quantum scrambling’ : The work addresses the problem of information loss in quantum computing system April 17th, 2026
Quantum nanoscience
Beyond silicon: Electronics at the scale of a single molecule January 30th, 2026
MXene nanomaterials enter a new dimension Multilayer nanomaterial: MXene flakes created at Drexel University show new promise as 1D scrolls January 30th, 2026
ICFO researchers overcome long-standing bottleneck in single photon detection with twisted 2D materials August 8th, 2025
 |
||
 |
||
| The latest news from around the world, FREE | ||
 |
||
|
|
||
| Premium Products | ||
 |
||
|
Only the news you want to read!
Learn More |
||
 |
||
|
Full-service, expert consulting
Learn More |
||
|
|
||