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closer to nuclear fusion on earth
Recently, Physicists confirmed a phenomenon known as the Quantum Boomerang Effect. A recent experiment showcases particles in a certain material can return to their approximate starting points after being nudged.(1) This occurs if the particles are in a material with lots of disorder and disruption with misaligned atoms or atoms sprinkled in the structure randomly.
In 1958, physicist Phillip Anderson realised an effect on electrons called localisation that occurs when the material has disorder such as missing or misaligned atoms.(1) Localisation is the effect in which electrons get stuck in place and they cannot travel far from their starting point. As the electrons cannot conduct electricity, the material that may be a metal is turned into an insulator. This is necessary for the boomerang effect.
Physicist David Weld of the University of California, Santa Barbara led his colleagues to demonstrate this effect using ultracold lithium atoms (instead of the electrons). (1) Rather than looking for atoms to return to their original position, the team looked at a comparable situation with momentum. The atoms were initially stationary but were hit with lasers to give them momentum, after this they returned, on average, to their original positions forming the boomerang effect. (1)
This is due to quantum physics. From wave-particle duality we can understand that quantum particles tend to act as waves. Once the laser hits the atoms, the waves combine to force a trajectory towards the original position of the particle. This effect only occurs in certain conditions, including the regularity of the laser beams, when it was altered the effect was broken.(2)
Although this has not been delved upon further than this research team it holds promise for the development of our knowledge of the quantum world.
References
1. Conover E. The quantum ‘boomerang’ effect has been seen for the first time [Internet]. Science News. 2022 [cited 2022 Feb 14]. Available from: https://www.sciencenews.org/article/quantumboomerang-effect-seen-first-time 2. Quantum Boomerang Effect Observed Experimentally For First Time | IFLScience [Internet]. [cited 2022 Feb 14]. Available from: https://www.iflscience.com/physics/quantum-boomerang-effect-observed-experimentally-for-first-time/?fr=operanews
The facility in which the effect was detected. Cited from: Conover E. The quantum ‘boomerang’ effect has been seen for the first time [Internet]. Science News. 2022 [cited 2022 Feb 14]. Available from: https://www.sciencenews.org/ article/quantum-boomerang-effect-seen-first-time
One step closer to Nuclear Fusion on Earth
Nuclear Fusion on earth will be revolutionary, in that it will provide an everlasting supply of low carbon, low-radiation energy. The Joint European Torus in Oxfordshire, UK has taken the first major leap towards developing nuclear fusion on earth. On 9th February 2022, they announced that 59 megajoules of energy was produced in five seconds, over double of what they had achieved in 1997.(1) While this still pales in comparison to the nuclear fusion within a star, it holds promise for a design that does indeed withstand a great amount of energy and to do so in a much larger facility would be a phenomenal step in the strides to produce nuclear fusion.(1) to be able to prove that nuclear fusion can act as a reliable source of energy in the second half of the century, no greenhouse gases would be produced and there would minimal amounts of radioactive waste. (1) Although JET couldn’t run any longer than 5 seconds as the copper electromagnets overheated, in ITER internally cooled superconducting magnets are to be used. (1) Fusion works through heating hydrogen atoms causing nuclei to fuse together and due to the instability of the new nuclei, a helium nucleus, a neutron, and tons of energy is released.
This facility is the ITER, in southern France, supported and financed by governments globally, it is expected
