If you slow atoms to a stop you can use them for self referencing navigation. In an aircraft for example, any change in direction will cause the atoms to move, which can be detected and used to determine the change in the planes course. This is an alternative to using GPS. And extremely useful for submarines, since submerged vessels cannot use GPS (the signals don't penitrate water)
this post was submitted on 28 Oct 2024
57 points (98.3% liked)
Ask Science
8601 readers
24 users here now
Ask a science question, get a science answer.
Community Rules
Rule 1: Be respectful and inclusive.
Treat others with respect, and maintain a positive atmosphere.
Rule 2: No harassment, hate speech, bigotry, or trolling.
Avoid any form of harassment, hate speech, bigotry, or offensive behavior.
Rule 3: Engage in constructive discussions.
Contribute to meaningful and constructive discussions that enhance scientific understanding.
Rule 4: No AI-generated answers.
Strictly prohibit the use of AI-generated answers. Providing answers generated by AI systems is not allowed and may result in a ban.
Rule 5: Follow guidelines and moderators' instructions.
Adhere to community guidelines and comply with instructions given by moderators.
Rule 6: Use appropriate language and tone.
Communicate using suitable language and maintain a professional and respectful tone.
Rule 7: Report violations.
Report any violations of the community rules to the moderators for appropriate action.
Rule 8: Foster a continuous learning environment.
Encourage a continuous learning environment where members can share knowledge and engage in scientific discussions.
Rule 9: Source required for answers.
Provide credible sources for answers. Failure to include a source may result in the removal of the answer to ensure information reliability.
By adhering to these rules, we create a welcoming and informative environment where science-related questions receive accurate and credible answers. Thank you for your cooperation in making the Ask Science community a valuable resource for scientific knowledge.
We retain the discretion to modify the rules as we deem necessary.
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
A more precise inertial navigation?
Exactly!
I couldn't think of the right term for it, thank you.
Yeah it sounds just like existing IME dead reckoning navigation, but with different sensor types
A specific vibration or position of the atoms, containing the information of changes in movement...
That's high-tech indeed, but still sounds like classical physics to me, even with the ultra-cold temperatures involved, no Uncertainty Principle at play.
Oh, believe you me, it's quantum: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/245114/quantum-sensor-future-navigation-system-tested/
I don't have the answer but I do want to know what the Einstein-Bose Condensate is. Is it different from the Bose-Einstein Condensate? I remember reading that it was an additional state of matter.
Argh! Edited the title, thank you for the correction.
Anyway, I believe they freeze lithium atoms very near Absolute Zero, so the electrons slow down, but because of the Uncertainty Principle, the lithium atoms' orbitals expand and overlap, creating a sort of gel where they can trap photons (I imagine from a laser) and slow them down to zero.
Awesome stuff! Idk how they could use this in regular life but, maybe as an improvement to photographs?
If it hits everyday life, it will be buried deep under a straightforward application layer. Some hobbyists bought "electricity"; most people bought "toasters" and "electric lights". CCDs revolutionized photography but the vast majority of users had no idea they were using one.
Depending on the mechanism by why which the condensate slows down the photon (for example, if it doesn't mess with polarization), you might be able to use it to store one half of an entangled pair of photons while you use the other to do whatever.
Putting together these two lines of thinking, a BEC could potentially be used as part of an authentication process to set up a secure channel; generate a pair, send one half of it off to your counterparts, verify their response using the stored one you have.
I think today, the stored photon is kept in a fiber optic loop; the idea would be the same as what you can do in a lab, but maybe much much smaller and cheaper.