Ultracold Molecules: Convergence of Subatomic Phenomena

In summary, After reading the Economist and PhysicsWeb articles, the speaker shares their interest in the convergence of toroidal phenomena and the recent discovery of gamma-ray bursts in lighting bolts. They also mention their hopes for new space probes to support this theory. However, the discovery of "dark messengers" puts a new perspective on this and leads to the synthesis of ultracold molecules. This achievement, while still in its early stages, has potential applications in superchemistry and quantum computing.
  • #1
Erich
18
0
Thought this may interest you guys,

http://www.economist.com/science/displayStory.cfm?story_id=3764508

And:

http://physicsweb.org/articles/news/9/3/16


The Economist article was such a grand convergence.


I found the articles looking for theoretical support for the p-B11 toroid fusion theorist of my previous posts. So many threads seemed to be coming together. Seward's ball lighting claim, the recent discovery of X and Gama-rays in lighting bolts at USF, I so wanted to see this progressive delineation of how toroids are expressed with the escalation of energy and scales.


After reading Greyber's paper :

http://arxiv.org/PS_cache/astro-ph/pdf/9704/9704283.pdf

I was starting to see toroidal phenomena in a nonlinear way, a bifurcation or tipping point in the evolution of galaxies and stars. I've come across some folks who think that atoms themselves have a plasmid structure. Atoms, ball lightning, vortexes, mushroom clouds, solar flares, planetary disks and rings, stars, Pulsars, Quasars, black holes, and galaxies all the result of a conspiracy of angular momentum, matter and energy. I think the public can get their brains around this with a proper presentation.

I hoped the new space probes that will spot gama-ray burst in near real time would also lead to supportive observations.

However the "dark messengers" article put things in a whole new light.




This is another example of convergence, which I' m always on the look out for. This may not be your interest, but please send it to any chemist you know:


Feat of experimental acrobatics leads to first synthesis of ultracold molecules

University of Chicago 04.04.2005

Feat of experimental acrobatics leads to first synthesis of ultracold
molecules
Achievement could benefit fields of superchemistry, quantum computing

A research team that in 2003 created an exotic new form of matter has
now shown for the first time how to arrange that matter into complex
molecules.

The experiments--conducted by Cheng Chin, now at the University of
Chicago, and his colleagues under the leadership of Rudolf Grimm at
Innsbruck University in Austria--may lead to a better scientific
understanding of superconductivity and advance a growing new field
called superchemistry. In the long term, they may also provide a
strategy that could aid the development of quantum computers. "In this
field, it’s hard to predict what’s going to happen, because none of this
was possible before 2003," said Chin, an Assistant Professor in Physics.
Chin, Grimm and five colleagues will report their findings in a future
issue of journal Physical Review Letters.

The new form of matter that the Innsbruck University team produced in
2003 is called a Fermion superfluid, which exists only at temperatures
hundreds of degrees below zero. Superfluids exhibit characteristics
distinctively different from the solids, liquids and gases that dominate
everyday life. Most notably, superfluids can flow ceaselessly without
any energy loss whatsoever. Science magazine named this work one of the
top 10 breakthroughs of 2004.

In creating the Fermion superfluid, the team extended the work that
earned the Nobel Prize in Physics for Eric Cornell, Wolfgang Ketterle
and Carl Wieman in 2001. Those scientists had succeeded in creating the
first Bose-Einstein condensate. Building on the work of Satyendra Nath
Bose, Albert Einstein predicted in the 1920s that a special state of
matter would form when a group of atoms collapsed into their lowest
energy state. In this state now named for them, all of the atoms behave
as if they are all one giant atom.

Cornell, Ketterle and Wieman created their Bose-Einstein condensate out
of bosons, one of the two major categories of subatomic particles.
Bosons carry force, while the other category of particles, fermions,
comprise matter. Chin and the Innsbruck team showed in 2003 that, with
some difficulty, fermions--in this case, lithium atoms--also can be
coaxed into a Bose-Einstein condensate.

"Atoms themselves cannot become condensed. They are not bosons," Chin
said. "But once they are paired they become bosons, and you can go to
this superfluid state."

The laws of quantum mechanics forbid fermions from condensing.

Chin and his colleagues used a technique called Feshbach resonance to
bind two atoms into a simple molecule that behaves like a boson. The
process is carried out in a magnetic field and resembles the type of
electron pairing that causes superconductivity--the unimpeded flow of
electricity at temperatures near absolute zero (minus 459.6 degrees
Fahrenheit)--in solids.

This type of electron pairing is called Cooper pairing. Cooper pairings
are the long-distance marriages of the subatomic world, where electrons
are bonded at distances far greater than usual. "We have discovered a
handle to adjust the interactions between atoms and between molecules,
which allows us to synthesize complex quantum objects," Chin said.

Approximately two years ago, the Innsbruck scientists found a deep and
unexpected connection between Bose-Einstein condensates and the bonding
of Cooper pairs. They learned that they could use a pair of atoms to
simulate the electrons of a Cooper pair. And more importantly, they
could control the interactions of the atoms.

In their latest achievement, Chin and his colleagues have learned how to
use Feshbach resonance as the control that binds the simple molecules
made of cesium atoms into even larger clusters at temperatures near
absolute zero.

"Since 2003, the controlled synthesis of simple molecules made of two
atoms has opened up new frontiers in the field of ultracold quantum
gases," said Rudolf Grimm, a professor of experimental physics at
Innsbruck University and a co-author of the Letters article. Their
present work now shows that ultracold simple molecules can be merged to
form more complex objects consisting of four atoms, he said.

An important feature of this synthesis process is its tenability, Chin
said. "In a magnetic field you can experimentally adjust it to any
value, so we can control the process."

The synthesis of ultracold molecules is so new, it is difficult to
predict potential applications, Chin said. But it puts a new field
called superchemistry on a firm experimental footing. In superchemistry,
scientists are able to precisely control the pairings and interactions
of the atoms and molecules in Bose-Einstein condensates.

"We are physicists, but now our field’s starting to overlap with
chemistry," Chin said.

As ultracold molecules are synthesized into complex quantum objects,
phenomena hidden at the subatomic scale will now become visible almost
to the naked eye. "These objects may open up completely new
possibilities to study the rich quantum physics of few-body objects,
including chemical reactions in the quantum world," Grimm said.

Control of quantum objects may ultimately lead to the realization of a
quantum computer, Chin said. Although possibly still decades from
fruition, a quantum computer would work much faster than today’s
computers. The idea would be to use atoms in ultracold gas as bits, the
basic units of information storage on a computer, with Feshbach
resonance controlling their interactions to perform computations.

Chin now is setting up his laboratory at the University of Chicago and
plans to continue studying quantum manipulation and computation based on
cold atoms and molecules in collaboration with Grimm’s Innsbruck team.

"Based on the speed of progress in this field, I think there probably
will be more surprises," Chin said.

More information: www.uchicago.edu


Cheers,
 
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  • #2
Feshbach resonance is not a technique, it is a mechanical concept. As opposed to shape resonance, a Feshbach resonance is a resonance of a system, with more than one degree of freedom. Of which would turn it into a bound state if coupling between some degrees of freedom and degrees of freedom associated to the fragmentation were set to zero.

Thanks for the news. I would appreciate it if more people posted news. I follow this news very well, but missed the second article.
 
  • #3



Thank you for sharing these articles on ultracold molecules and their potential applications. It is truly fascinating to see how different fields of science are coming together to explore and understand the subatomic world. The convergence of subatomic phenomena is not only exciting for researchers, but also for the general public who can now have a better understanding of how the universe works on a fundamental level.

The potential applications of ultracold molecules, such as in superchemistry and quantum computing, are also very promising. It's amazing to think that by manipulating atoms and molecules at extremely low temperatures, we may be able to develop faster and more efficient computers.

I also appreciate the mention of the potential connection between ultracold molecules and toroidal structures. It's interesting to see how different phenomena in the universe may be linked in ways that we are just beginning to understand.

Overall, I think these articles highlight the importance of interdisciplinary research and the potential for groundbreaking discoveries when different fields of science come together. Thank you again for sharing these thought-provoking articles.
 

1. What are ultracold molecules and why are they important in scientific research?

Ultracold molecules are molecules that have been cooled to extremely low temperatures, typically below 1 Kelvin. They are important in scientific research because at these low temperatures, quantum effects become more dominant and can be studied in detail. This allows scientists to gain a better understanding of subatomic phenomena and potentially develop new technologies.

2. How are ultracold molecules created in the laboratory?

Ultracold molecules are typically created using a combination of laser cooling and evaporative cooling techniques. Laser cooling uses lasers to slow down and cool the molecules, while evaporative cooling removes the most energetic molecules from the sample, leaving behind a colder and denser sample.

3. What is the significance of the convergence of subatomic phenomena in ultracold molecules?

The convergence of subatomic phenomena in ultracold molecules refers to the ability to manipulate and control the interactions between individual atoms and molecules. This allows scientists to study and understand the fundamental building blocks of matter and potentially create new states of matter.

4. How are ultracold molecules being used in practical applications?

Ultracold molecules have a wide range of potential applications, including precision measurements, quantum computing, and quantum simulation. They can also be used to study chemical reactions and potentially develop new materials with unique properties.

5. What are the challenges in studying ultracold molecules and how are scientists overcoming them?

One of the main challenges in studying ultracold molecules is maintaining their low temperatures and preventing them from interacting with their environment. Scientists are constantly developing new techniques and technologies to improve cooling and trapping methods, as well as finding ways to shield the molecules from external influences that can disrupt their quantum behavior.

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