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'Unparticles' May Hold the Key To Superconductivity
KentuckyFC (1144503) writes One curious property of massless particles like photons is that their energy or momentum can take any value across many orders of magnitude, a property that physicists call scale invariance. By contrast, massive particles like electrons always have the same mass regardless of their energy or momentum. So massive particles are not scale invariant. The concept of unparticles is the idea that some "stuff" may have mass, energy and momentum and yet also be scale invariant. This stuff must be profoundly different from ordinary particles, hence the name: unparticles. Nobody has ever seen an unparticle but now physicists are suggesting that unparticles may hold the key to understanding unconventional superconductivity. Their thinking is that at very low temperatures, ordinary particles can sometimes behave like unparticles. In other words, their properties become independent of the scale at which they're observed. So if an unparticle moves without resistance on a tiny scale, then it must also move without resistance at every scale, hence the phenomenon of superconductivity. That could provide some important insights into unconventional superconductivity which has puzzled physicists since it was discovered in the 1980s.
Their thinking is that at very low temperatures, ordinary particles can sometimes behave like unparticles. In other words, their properties become independent of the scale at which they're observed.
So their properties become independent of scale... When one of their properties falls below a certain value on the scale of temperature?
And dogs can look like lemurs, as long as they don't look too much like dogs.
Scientist 1: How about we fuck with the public again today?
Scientist 2: What do you have in mind?
Scientist 1: Let's invent a new term "unparticle", give it a scientific sounding description and do a press release.
Scientist 2: You are just evil. I love it.
Scientist 1: I can't wait to log into Slashdot and see the "geniuses" explain how it works.
In particle physics I believe the term "massive particle" is used to denote any particle with mass. Makes for a nice contrast to a massless particle. See for instance the wikipedia entry or the paper in question on arXiv.
at at very low temperatures, ordinary particles can sometimes behave like unparticles
Temperature is related to the kinetic energy of a group of particles. It determines which way energy will be transfered in interactions between them. The concept of temperature for a single particle is somewhat strange. A particle doesn't know how fast it is moving (and what kinetic energy and temperature it has) until it hits something. So temperature and superconductivity are properties of the system, not each particle.
Have gnu, will travel.
First unpersons, now unparticles?
The Party's meddling in physics id doubleplusungood.
I never thought I'd see those words used literally like that.
Memo to self: Do NOT, repeat, do NOT call the next skinny woman I see "massive" - being technically correct won't get me a date.
Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.