Stoping light or atleast slowing it down

[bleh]

i can't remember where i read this but it was an artical about stoping light or atleast slowing it down i can't find anyother information on it and i was wondering if any of you knew where i could find some

thanks


bleh

 

[LURCH]

I recall a Topic in PF-2.0 that was entitled: "HELP! How Did They Get Light To Stand Still?!", or words to that effect. I'll dig out my disk (which sounds really painfull, but I'll be OK) and see if that Topic contained a link.

 

[Quasaire]

Just do a google search here Google Search: Stopping Light.

Are select one of the links below:
http://www.aip.org/mgr/png/2001/107.htm[/URL]
[PLAIN]http://www.sciencefriday.com/pages/2001/Jan/hour2_011901.html[/URL]
[URL=http://news.com.com/2100-1001-251260.html]Stopping light could lead to quantum advance in computing | CNET[/URL]
[PLAIN]http://www.ima.umn.edu/industrial/2001-2002/weinstein.html[/URL]
http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nature/journal/v409/n6819/full/409461a0_r.html

 

[photon]

I remember reading an article in Scientific American magazine about some scientists slowing down a beam of light. I can't remember which issue it is exactly, but I know it was from a few months ago.

 

[PRodQuanta]

Yes, in fact, there was a article in scientific american's Physics Special Edition. About how a team from MIT actually froze light (photons. Very clever.

 

[cytokinesis]

Didnt they use the Bose-Einstein condensate for that?

 

[Tail]

I caN't believe it can be done. It's basically ignoring the theory of relativity, as it is based on the constant of the speed of light!

As far as I know, you can only change its frequency, like red-shift or blue-shift it, which is what gravitation does.

 

[Hurkyl]

You can also absorb it.

 

[Brad_Ad23]

Which is exactly what they did. They essentially froze the light's wave-front into a steady state of some atom condensate if I recall correctly.


And tails, Relativity says all observes in any reference frame will regard the speed of light in vacuum to be the same. Slowing down light by altering the medium in which it progresses is not contradicting relativity in any way, shape or form.

 

[Tail]

Oh. So it's NOT slowing the light down really, is it...

 

[Hurkyl]

Right!

They're slowing the group velocity of the wave, not the individual photons.