2023-08-13 04:00:14
Almost 70 years after it was first theorized, a mysterious “demon particle” has been observed inside a superconductor. His discovery could solve the mystery surrounding the physics of superconductors.
Samples of cryogenic superconductors float above and below a magnet.
Image Credit: Charles O’Rear via Getty Images
This Pines “demon” is a chargeless particle found inside a sample strontium (Strontium is a chemical element, symbol Sr and atomic number 38. Le…). It is a plasmon (In a metal, a plasmon is a quantified plasma oscillation. Oscillations…), a vibration of electrons, qualified as a quasiparticle.
Theoreticians believe that these plasmons could promote superconductivity in certain materials (A material is a material of natural or artificial origin that man shapes to…). If physicists manage to understand how it works, Pines’ “demon” could shed light on the design of ambient temperature superconductors, capable of transmitting almost without loss. This discovery was published on August 9 in the journal Nature.
Peter Abbamonte, professor of physics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, said: “Demons have been theorized for a long time. , but never studied experimentally. We weren’t even looking for it (Scientific research designates in the first place all the actions undertaken with a view to …), but we ended up discovering it.”
In 1956, David Pines theorized this demon, predicting its appearance in certain metals. Currently, very cold temperatures are needed to form a plasmon, but Pines suggested that the latter could exist at room temperature.
To detect it, the researchers bombarded crystallized strontium ruthenate with electrons and measured their energies. They thus calculated the movement of plasma waves ( In physics, plasma describes a state of matter made up of charged particles (ions…) inside the material (A material is a matter of natural origin or artificial that the man shapes…) The quasiparticle which they discovered corresponded to the forecasts.
Ali Husain, physicist at Quantinuum, said: “At first we didn’t know what it was. But as Fur is a small Danish island in the Limfjord. Fur has about 900 inhabitants. . The island… ) and as we ruled out the possibilities, we started to think we really had found the demon.”
Further research could reveal key insights into how superconductors work. Although standard theory suggests a role for phonons, Pines’ demon could also be involved.
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