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Physicists Create 'Quantum Knots' (amherst.edu)

Posted by Soulskill on from the like-regular-knots-but-quantum dept.

New submitter Kekke writes with news that researchers from Amherst College and Aalto University have figured out a way to create knotted solitary waves in a quantum-mechanical field. They call their creation "quantum knots". Professor David Hall said, "First we cooled a gas of rubidium atoms down to billionths of a degree above zero, at which point it became a superfluid—a tiny, well-ordered environment in which these particle-like objects can exist. Then we exposed the superfluid to a rapid change of a specifically tailored magnetic field, which tied the knot in less than a thousandth of a second." Research group leader Mikko Möttönen added, "For decades, physicists have been theoretically predicting that it should be possible to have knots in quantum fields, but nobody else has been able to make one. Now that we have seen these exotic beasts, we are really excited to study their peculiar properties."

5 of 51 comments (clear)

  1. Not sure of the importance by TheReaperD · · Score: 3, Informative

    I read TFA and I'm still not sure what the importance or application of this is. Is this just to make therotical physicists sqee or are there anticipated important properties or applications?

    --
    "Be particularly skeptical when presented with evidence confirming what you already believe." -
    1. Re:Not sure of the importance by Baloroth · · Score: 5, Insightful

      AFAIK there are no directly anticipated applications. However, knotted fields are incredibly cool and interesting physical objects (if you're into that kinda thing). Of course, formation of novel magnetic fields could have applications in fusion research or quantum computing, but the idea behind theoretical physics research like this is to figure out how things work, and let the engineers and applied physicists figure out the applications (if they exist) later on. It's worked pretty well so far. And confirming that nature actually works like it's been predicted to work is a worthy endeavor in and of itself, even if it turns out to have no applications at all.

      --
      "None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license." --John Milton
    2. Re:Not sure of the importance by ClickOnThis · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I read TFA and I'm still not sure what the importance or application of this is. Is this just to make therotical physicists sqee or are there anticipated important properties or applications?

      What use is a newborn baby?
      -- attributed in various forms to Benjamin Franklin and to Michael Faraday

      --
      If it weren't for deadlines, nothing would be late.
  2. String theory by frank_adrian314159 · · Score: 5, Funny

    A string walks into a bar. The bartender looks at him and yells, "Get out! We don't serve your kind in here."

    The string walks out and walks back in a few minutes later looking beat up and disheveled. The bartender looks at him and says menacingly, "Aren't you that string that was in here a couple minutes ago?"

    The string looks at the bartender and says, "No. I'm a frayed knot."

    --
    That is all.
  3. Re:they're not knots by fahrbot-bot · · Score: 5, Funny

    That'd be handy for shoe laces.

    Ya, until they get entangled.

    --
    It must have been something you assimilated. . . .