Scientists from the University of Basel noticed for the very first time the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen paradox (EPR) of quantum mechanics in a complex interacting system of hundreds of atoms.
The phenomena can be traced back to a renowned mind-experiment, which has been conducted back in 1935.
The paradox permits precise predictability of the measurement and may be applied to develop new kinds of sensors and new electromagnetic imaging methods. The discoveries were just released in the journal Science.
In the world of small particles, which is governed by the laws of quantum physics, there is a critical threshold for the precision of such predictions.
This threshold is stated by the Heisenberg uncertainty ratio, which establishes that it is precluded to simultaneously forecast, for example, the measurements of the location and time of a particle.
Scientists managed to create the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen paradox of quantic mechanics
During past-experiments, researchers have used either light or single atoms to investigate the EPR paradox.
Now, a group of physicists directed by Professor Philipp Treutlein from the University Of Basel has witnessed the EPR paradox by successfully implementing a multi-particle system of a few hundred atoms ‘working’ together within a system, for the first time.
The study employed lasers to quench atoms to temperatures at which the atoms act entirely in conformity with the principles of quantum mechanics and constitute the Bose-Einstein condensate, which is a condition of the matter that Einstein foresaw in a ground-breaking paper he issued in 1925.
In this ultra-frosty mist, that is Bose-Einstein condensate, atoms are continuously clashing with each other, twisting and swirling.
The investigators then measured the centrifugation in regions that were separated from the condensate. The high-resolution images allowed for the measurement of the spin sequences between directly split regions and, in parallel, the positioning of the atoms at accurately determined locations.
With their recreation of the Einstein-Podolsky-Rose paradox, the scientists were successful in making predictions of outcomes for other regions using the measurements conducted in another region, a principle theorized by quantum mechanics.
