According to their new research recently published in " Physical Review Letters" (Physical Review Letters), researchers from three German universities have created the coldest temperature in the laboratory on record-to be precise , Which is 38 trillionths of a degree higher than absolute zero.
This breakthrough brings us one step closer to absolute zero, which may have a huge impact on particle physics.
applied space technology and microgravity center at University of Bremen , the biting temperature lasted only a few seconds, but this breakthrough may have a long-term impact on our understanding of quantum mechanics .
This is because the closer we get to absolute zero—the lowest temperature we can theoretically reach based on heat—the more peculiar the behavior of particles, that is, matter. For example, liquid helium becomes "superfluid" at extremely low temperatures, which means it flows without any frictional resistance. Nitrogen freezes at -210 degrees Celsius. At sufficiently low temperatures, some particles even exhibit fluctuating characteristics.
absolute zero is equal to −273.15 degrees Celsius, or -459.67 degrees Fahrenheit, but in most cases, its measured value is 0 Kelvin . According to "ScienceDaily", at this point, "the elementary particle in nature has minimal vibrational motion". However, it is impossible for scientists to create absolute zero conditions in the laboratory.
In this case, when researchers were studying the wave characteristics of atoms, they proposed a process that can reduce the temperature of the system by slowing down the particle speed to almost completely stop it. Within a few seconds, the particles were completely still, and the temperature dropped to a staggering 38 pickelvins, or 38 trillionths of a degree above absolute zero. This temperature is so low that it cannot be detected by any conventional thermometer. on the contrary,Temperature is based on the lack of movement of particles.
According to the team's research paper, the mechanism at work here is "a time domain matter wave lens system". The matter wave is just like its name: matter that moves like a wave. This is part of quantum physics . In this field, everything we thought we knew would become somewhat unstable after careful study. In this case, the scientists used an electrostatic “lens” made of a turbid substance called quantum gas, and used it to focus the matter waves and express them in a specific way. Conventional gas is composed of a loose arrangement of discrete particles, but quantum gas is not such a predictable substance. In this case, quantum gas is a confusing state of matter called Bose -Einstein condensate.
The quantum gas lens is "tuned" through careful excitation. Think of the lens on a pair of glasses. Its curvature is designed according to the patient's eyes and can focus closer or farther. In this experiment, the scientists adjusted the focus to infinity. In quantum physics called optics, this means that quantum gases confine the passing particles together until they pass one at a time at an amazingly slow speed.
"By combining the excitation of the Bose-Einstein condensate ( BEC ) with a magnetic lens, we form a time-domain matter wave lens system,” the researchers wrote. "The focus is adjusted by the intensity of the lens potential. By placing the focus at infinity, we reduce the total internal kinetic energy of the BEC to 38 pK."
from the University of Bremen, Humboldt University Berlin and Mainz Johann Researchers at Nes Gutenberg University said they expect that future researchers will make particles move more slowly, possibly up to a 17-second "weightlessness" period.
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