A macroscopic amount of matter has been put in a quantum superposition

1 year ago 48

Physics

Researchers have put a sapphire crystal containing quadrillions of atoms into a superposition of quantum states, bringing quantum effects into the macroscopic world

By Leah Crane

The sapphire crystal resonator used by ETH researchers to probe the validity of quantum mechanics in objects consisting of trillions of atoms.?(Image: ETH Zurich)

Quantum effects have been demonstrated on one of the largest scales ever, pushing the boundaries of the quantum world. A crystal of 10¹⁶ atoms has been placed in a superposition of two quantum states, breaking the previous record of only 2000 atoms.

When a particle is in a quantum superposition of two states, it occupies both distinct states at the same time – the most famous example is Schrödinger’s cat, in which a theoretical cat in …

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