Hasta La Gadget!

Electronics? That’s so 20th century. Physicists at the Joint Quantum Institute have made a significant advancement in the field of atomtronics, using atoms in certain quantum states instead of electrons to build devices. According to an article published on ScienceNews.org, the field has already yielded a number of designs for the replacement of standard electronic components with atomtronic ones. Now, the physicists have created a ring-shaped condensate that they say could be used to create an extremely accurate rotation sensor. This isn’t the kind of thing you can expect to see in your next cell phone though; the process requires precise laser beams and a way to chill the condensate down to just a few billionths of a degree above absolute zero.

Despite the experimental nature of the field, this discovery marks an important achievement, as it’s the first time anyone has created a ring-shaped condensate. The tiny circle of gas only lasted for about 40 seconds, but that was long enough for the team to measure its frictionless spin, set to about one revolution per second. This isn’t quite the rotation sensor itself, but one could be built from it, using a barrier that would cause changes in current when rotated at certain speeds.

ScienceNews.org said the pioneers in the field hope that “atoms will prove to be more interesting than electrons.” When was the last time you heard about an electronic sensor that used near absolute zero temperatures and lasers to create a frictionless ring? I’d say atomtronics has already gotten to a pretty interesting level. Hopefully, there’ll be more to come.

[via ScienceNews.org]