Lifeboat Foundation

An international team of physicists has succeeded in measuring a property of the electron known as topological spin winding for the first time. The team obtained this result by studying the behaviour of electrons in so-called kagome metals, which are materials that have unique quantum properties related to their physical shape, or topology. The work could advance our understanding of the physics of superconductors and other systems that contain strongly correlated electrons.

Kagome metals are named after a traditional Japanese basket-weaving technique that produces a lattice of interlaced, symmetrical triangles with shared corners. When the atoms of a metal or other conductor are arranged in this kagome pattern, their electrons behave in unusual ways. For example, the wavefunctions of the electrons can interfere destructively, resulting in highly localized electronic states in which the particles interact strongly with each other. These strong interactions lead to a range of quantum phenomena, including magnetic ordering of unpaired electrons spins that can produce, for example, ferro-or antiferromagnetic phases, superconducting structures, quantum spin liquids and abnormal topological phases. All these phases have applications in advanced nanoelectronics and spintronics technologies.

In the new work, researchers led by Domenico Di Sante of the University of Bologna in Italy studied the spin and electronic structure of XV₆Sn₆, where X is a rare-earth element. These recently-discovered kagome metals contain a Dirac electronic band and a nearly flat electronic band. At the point at which these bands meet, an effect called spin-orbit coupling creates a narrow gap between the bands. This spin-orbit coupling also creates special type of electronic ground state at the material’s surface.

It seems quantum mechanics and thermodynamics cannot be true simultaneously. In a new publication, University of Twente researchers use photons in an optical chip to demonstrate how both theories can be true at the same time.

In quantum mechanics, time can be reversed and information is always preserved. That is, one can always find back the previous state of particles. It was long unknown how this could be true at the same time as thermodynamics. There, time has a direction and information can also be lost. “Just think of two photographs that you put in the sun for too long, after a while you can no longer distinguish them,” explains author Jelmer Renema.

There was already a theoretical solution to this quantum puzzle and even an experiment with atoms, but now the University of Twente (UT) researchers have also demonstrated it with photons. “Photons have the advantage that it is quite easy to reverse time with them,” explains Renema. In the experiment, the researchers used an optical chip with channels through which the photons could pass. At first, they could determine exactly how many photons there were in each channel, but after that, the photons shuffled positions.

“I find it totally amazing that it is possible at all to build these light structures.”

A Ph.D. candidate at has developed an innovative technique for creating the elementary building blocks of a future quantum computer or internet in a more controlled manner, opening up a potential solution to many of the challenges along the road to this long-sought technology.

Petr Steindl’s doctoral thesis, which he defended last week as the final step in his Ph.D. program at Leiden University in Germany, explores a new technique for generating photons using quantum dots and microcavities.

A controversial new type of electric propulsion system that physicists say defies Newton’s Laws of Motion, known as the Quantum Drive, has secured a spot on a SpaceX rocket and will launch into low Earth orbit (LEO) this October.

Designed by IVO Ltd., an electronics prototyping company, the promising yet controversial Quantum Drive could change the future of space travel and, if proven to work, would potentially rewrite or expand many of the accepted principles of inertia and motion that have existed for centuries.

Newtonian Physics Says creating inertia Without Propellant is Impossible.

Inside a lab, scientists marvel at a strange state that forms when they cool down atoms to nearly absolute zero. Meanwhile, just outside their window, trees are absorbing sunlight and converting it into new leaves. These two scenarios may seem entirely unrelated, but a recent study from the University of Chicago proposes that these processes are not as distinct as they might appear on the surface.

Published in the journal PRX Energy, the study established connections at the atomic level between the process of photosynthesis and exciton condensates, —a strange state of physics that allows energy to flow frictionlessly through a material. According to the authors, this discovery is not only fascinating from a scientific perspective, but it may also offer new perspectives for electronics design.

LOS ANGELES – Artificial intelligence, quantum computing and nuclear power are among the key technologies Lockheed Martin sees as important for future space missions.

Through a project called Destination: Space 2050, Lockheed Martin executives are exploring, for example, how AI could assist scientific exploration of locations where communications with remote sensors would be disrupted by high latency.

In that type of environment, “you really can’t interact with the robotic sensors,” David Lackner, Lockheed Martin senior manager strategy and business development, said during a June 28 webinar. “You have to have something that is super autonomous that can deal with unknown unknowns. We’ve got some really interesting causal autonomy tools that … allow the AI to be super smart about running into something that it hasn’t encountered before.”

Researchers have achieved a major milestone in quantum computing by extending the lifetime of quantum information beyond the breakeven point using Quantum Error Correction, opening the path for effective quantum information processing amidst real-world noise. Understanding Decoherence and Quantum E.

There’s a new way to harness the power of the sun and it may just revolutionize how we approach solar energy. The development is called quantum dots and it consists of tiny semiconductor particles only a few nanometers in size.

This is according to a report by Fagen Wasanni published on Saturday.

“Quantum dots have unique properties that make them ideal for use in solar cells. Their small size allows them to absorb light from a wide range of wavelengths, including those that traditional solar cells cannot capture. This means that quantum dot-based solar cells can potentially convert more sunlight into electricity, significantly increasing their efficiency,” states the report.

However, an independent group of scientists, inventors, and engineers called Applied Physics recently proposed the first model for a physical warp drive, according to a recent study published in the peer-reviewed journal Classical and Quantum Gravity.