Martin Zwierlein

Physicists have discovered a new quantum bit, or 'qubit,' in the form of vibrating pairs of atoms known as fermions. The new qubit appears to be extremely robust, able to maintain superposition between two vibrational states, even in the midst of environmental noise, for up to 10 seconds, offering a possible foundation for future quantum computers.

MIT physicists have discovered a new quantum bit, or "qubit," in the form of vibrating pairs of atoms known as fermions. The new qubit appears to be extremely robust, able to maintain superposition between two vibrational states, even in the midst of environmental noise, for up to 10 seconds, offering a possible foundation for future quantum computers.

The new observations record a key crossover from classical to quantum behavior. The world we experience is governed by classical physics. How we move, where we are, and how fast we're going are all determined by the classical assumption that we can only exist in one place at any one moment in time.

MIT scientists have imaged heat traveling as a wave, called "second sound," in superfluid quantum gas. This discovery could unlock mysteries of neutron stars and superconductors.

Scientists found quantum edge states in ultracold sodium atoms, possibly leading to highly efficient energy systems with minimal loss.

MIT physicists directly observed ultracold atoms in an "edge state," flowing along a boundary without resistance. The research could help physicists manipulate electrons to flow without friction in materials that could enable super-efficient transmission of energy and data.

For the first time, MIT physicists have captured direct images of "second sound," the movement of heat sloshing back and forth within a superfluid. The results will expand scientists' understanding of heat flow in superconductors and neutron stars.

It could change everything.

Here's visible proof for the first time ever.

MIT physicists captured the first images that directly show the pairing of fermions. The snapshots of particles pairing up in a cloud of atoms can provide clues to how electrons pair up in a superconducting material.

When your laptop or smartphone heats up, it's due to energy that's lost in translation. The same goes for power lines that transmit electricity between cities. In fact, around 10 percent of the generated energy is lost in the transmission of electricity. That's because the electrons that carry electric charge do so as free agents, bumping and grazing against other electrons as they move collectively through power…

The effect is similar to the macro-scale phenomenon of Kelvin-Helmholtz clouds.

MIT physicists have discovered a new quantum bit, or "qubit," in the form of vibrating pairs of atoms known as fermions. They found that when pairs of fermions are chilled and trapped in an optical lattice, the particles can exist simultaneously in two states—a weird quantum phenomenon known as superposition. In this case, the atoms held a superposition of two vibrational states, in which the pair wobbled against…