Physicists harness quantum 'time reversal' to measure vibrating atoms

Physicists harness quantum “time reversal” to measure vibrating atoms

MIT physicists have significantly amplified quantum changes in atomic vibrations, allowing them to exclude noise from the classical world. This advance may allow them to measure these atomic oscillations, and how they evolve over time, and ultimately hone the precision of atomic clocks and of quantum sensors for detecting dark matter or gravitational waves.

Physicists harness quantum 'time reversal' to measure vibrating atoms

The quantum vibrations in atoms hold a miniature world of information. If scientists can accurately measure these atomic oscillations, and how they evolve over time, they can hone the precision of atomic clocks as well as quantum sensors, which are systems of atoms whose fluctuations can indicate the presence of dark matter, a passing gravitational wave, or even new, unexpected phenomena.