Dive into the mesmerizing world of quantum mechanics and uncover the secrets of the quantum vacuum—a concept that challenges everything we thought we knew about empty space. This video explores the dynamic, energy-filled realm of the quantum vacuum, where virtual particles pop in and out of existence and Zero Point Energy offers tantalizing possibilities for clean, limitless power.
Learn about the Casimir Effect, a fascinating phenomenon where quantum fluctuations create forces between metal plates, and discover how these principles could revolutionize fields like nanotechnology, energy production, and even space exploration. From the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle to the Reverse Casimir Effect, this journey into quantum mechanics highlights the incredible potential of harnessing Zero Point Energy for a sustainable future.
Whether you’re a science enthusiast, a technology visionary, or just curious about the universe’s mysteries, this video will inspire you with the groundbreaking implications of the quantum vacuum and Zero Point Energy.
In quantum computers, information is often carried by single photons and picked up by structures named superconducting nanostrip single-photon detectors (SNSPDs). In principle, traditional type-I superconductors would be easier to integrate into existing quantum computing architectures than the type-II materials more widely used today. So far, however, this possibility hasn’t been widely explored.
New research published in Superconductivity shows how Lixing You and colleagues at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China have for the first time successfully fabricated an SNSPD using thin films of the type-I superconductor, aluminum, and used the structure to detect single photons of visible light with extremely high efficiency.
Compared with the type-II superconductors more commonly used in SNSPDs so far, aluminum is more compatible with the latest quantum computing architectures.
Physicists turn to supercomputers to help build a 3D picture of the structures of protons and neutrons.
A team of scientists has made exciting advances in mapping the internal components of hadrons. They employed complex quantum chromodynamics and supercomputer simulations to explore how quarks and gluons interact within protons, aiming to unravel mysteries like the proton’s spin and internal energy distribution.
Illinois is one of a handful of emerging quantum hubs, competing with regions like Silicon Valley and Boston. Chalsani told Chicago that the state is well-positioned to lead in the quantum race, citing the presence of institutions such as the University of Illinois, University of Chicago, Argonne National Laboratory, and Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory.
“The number of STEM graduates we produce here is the third most in the country,” she said. “Microsoft hires more people from University of Illinois than any other school. I love stats like that.”
Chalsani acknowledged the challenge of retaining this talent, much of which traditionally leaves the area.
The team found that the sharing of information that defines entanglement occurs across whole groups of fundamental particles called quarks and gluons within a proton.
“Before we did this work, no one had looked at entanglement inside of a proton in experimental high-energy collision data,” team member and Brookhaven Lab physicist Zhoudunming Tu said in a statement. “For decades, we’ve had a traditional view of the proton as a collection of quarks and gluons, and we’ve been focused on understanding so-called single-particle properties, including how quarks and gluons are distributed inside the proton.
Now, with evidence that quarks and gluons are entangled, this picture has changed. We have a much more complicated, dynamic system.
Quantum physics is a very diverse field: it describes particle collisions shortly after the Big Bang as well as electrons in solid materials or atoms far out in space. But not all quantum objects are equally easy to study. For some—such as the early universe—direct experiments are not possible at all.
However, in many cases, quantum simulators can be used instead: one quantum system (for example, a cloud of ultracold atoms) is studied in order to learn something about another system that looks physically very different, but still follows the same laws, i.e. adheres to the same mathematical equations.
It is often difficult to find out which equations determine a particular quantum system. Normally, one first has to make theoretical assumptions and then conduct experiments to check whether these assumptions prove correct.
Quantum computing holds the promise of outperforming classical computing on some optimization and data processing tasks. The creation of highly performing large-scale quantum computers, however, relies on the ability to support controlled interactions between qubits, which are the units of information in quantum computing, at a range of distances.
So far, maintaining the coherence of interactions between distant semiconductor qubits, while also controlling these interactions, has proved challenging. By overcoming this hurdle, quantum physicists and engineers could develop more advanced quantum computers that can tackle more complex problems.
Researchers at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) have devised a promising approach to realize coherent quantum interactions between distant semiconductor qubits. Their paper, published in Nature Physics, demonstrates the use of this approach to attain coherent interaction between two electron spin qubits that are 250 μm apart.
