14 Okt. Time crystal: quantum particles oscillate in a laser lattice
Regular rhythms can result, for example, from the oscillations of a pendulum. However, they can also arise in a completely different way – spontaneously, without an external clock, through the complex interaction of many particles. In line with the spatially periodic structure of a crystal, this is referred to as a time crystal, which has a periodic structure – a fixed rhythm – in time.
From space crystal to time crystal
In fact, research results have shown that time crystals are possible – systems in which a temporal rhythm is established without an external clock being imposed, explains Felix Russo from the Institute of Theoretical Physics at TU Wien, Vienna.
“However, it was thought that this was only possible in very specific systems, such as quantum gases, whose physics can be well described by mean values without having to take into account the random fluctuations that are inevitable in quantum physics,” says Russo. “We have now shown that it is precisely the quantum physical correlations between the particles, which were previously thought to prevent the formation of time crystals, that can produce time crystals.”
Particles in a laser lattice
“We are investigating a two-dimensional lattice of particles held in place by laser beams,” explains Russo. “And here we can show that the state of the lattice begins to oscillate due to the quantum interaction between the particles.” According to the researchers, this research offers the opportunity to better understand the theory of quantum many-particle systems – paving the way for new quantum technologies or high-precision quantum measurement techniques.
Source and image: www.tuwien.at