Welcome to Episode 4 of SOS, where we jump into the present-future and delve into the mysterious world of time crystals! You may have heard of traditional crystals like diamonds or quartz. Still, time crystals are a new concept that defies our understanding of thermodynamics. They are made up of atoms or particles that exhibit a repeating motion pattern over time. Their existence was first proposed in 2012. In 2016, time crystals were physically created in a laboratory. Since then, scientists have been making new discoveries about these fascinating structures.
Time crystals are formed by cooling atoms to aggressively low temperatures, causing the particles to form a Bose-Einstein condensate and creating waves of energy called magnons that move in a repeating pattern. Researchers have been experimenting with time crystals in various ways, from connecting two independent time crystals to create a one-time crystal with two different states to creating time crystals using light.
One of the most exciting potential uses of time crystals is quantum computing. Qubits, the basic units of information in quantum computers, exist in multiple states simultaneously and process large amounts of data. Time crystals would be perfect for this task as they are stable and maintain a periodic motion pattern without interference from external forces.
As scientists continue to explore the potential uses and applications of time crystals, it’s clear that they could revolutionize the field of quantum computing and change our understanding of the nature of time. The mysteries surrounding time crystals are still unfolding, but we can’t wait to see what the future holds.
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