Researchers attempt quantum superposition of a tiny glass sphere
JUL 19, 2011
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.025458
New Scientist : Can large objects follow quantum laws? To answer that question, Oriol Romero-Isart from the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching, Germany, and colleagues are experimenting to see whether a nanometer-sized glass sphere can exist in two entirely distinct places at one time, with no overlap. They propose placing the sphere in a small cavity and striking it with a laser, causing it to bounce around in the cavity. But since the light is quantum in nature, writes Michael Brooks for New Scientist, so too will be the position of the sphere, which forces the sphere into a quantum superposition. So far, such superposition has only been achieved with molecules containing a few hundred atoms. Romero-Isart is lead author on the group’s paper published 8 July in Physical Review Letters.
© 2011 American Institute of Physics
