Researchers at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), with support from the US Army Research Office, the National Science Foundation, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and the Army Research Office, have announced a successful breakthrough produced by laser light and manipulating a new state of matter called supersolid at room temperature.
The research group that supports the historic achievement said that showing that a supersolid can be created and controlled without the need for very cold temperatures by engineering how light and matter interact in a nanoscale device overcomes a “long-standing limitation” in the study of such unusual states of matter.
Exotic State of Matter First proposed in the 1960s
In nature, solids are defined as objects or materials that have a structured structure. On the other hand, fluids are substances that can flow without resistance. Scientists first hypothesized that a solid could exhibit fluid-like flow in the 1960s; however, the idea remained a hypothesis for decades.
Recently, researchers have succeeded in creating a state of matter that combines the properties of both materials, called a supersolid. Last year, The Debrief reports on the creation of a supersolid using laser light. However, the production of this once theoretical state of matter has only been achieved under extreme conditions, including at very low energy levels close to absolute zero.
Now, a team led by RPI has achieved this, creating the first stable, room-temperature superheater using light energy.
“Our work shows that you can create and control this unusual state using light,” said Wei Bao, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at RPI and senior author of the study, adding that it happens at ‘room temperature.’
‘Unexpected Reality’ Patterns Confirm Effect Is Not Externally Caused
To create a room temperature sensor, the researchers built a device that combines a high-quality perovskite crystal with a special, precise nanostructure. According to the statement that explains the success, the nanostructure is designed to trap and shape light. Wei Li, a senior Ph.D. A student in Bao’s lab and lead author of a study describing the breakthrough, he said the fabrication of the light-absorbing nanostructure was carefully controlled to “ensure that the device can block light and behave in a systematic manner.”
After making the nanostructure, the team exposed it to laser light. According to Bao and his colleagues, this process produces hybrid particles called polaritons, which are “part light and part matter.” When these particles are brought together to behave collectively, they can form a coherent quantum ‘fluid’.
As mentioned earlier, such unusual states usually occur in low-energy areas. However, as the condensed polariton fluid gains more energy, it begins to change. According to the RPI team, instead of remaining uniform, the newly enhanced quantum liquid “organizes itself into a striated pattern,” similar to a crystal.
Clearly, this oddity preserves numerical unity throughout the entire system. Bao says this second nature is the “defining characteristic” of the supersolid.
“The system is organized and coherent at the same time,” the researcher explained.
When the team conducted several experiments by increasing the energy entering their quantum liquid, they observed an unusual state of matter in a colorful way. However, the team was surprised to find that the effect varied across experiments.
“Every time we repeat the experiment, the system chooses a slightly different configuration,” Bao explained.
According to the researcher, this randomness confirmed that the process was spontaneous rather than ‘imposed’ by an external force. Yilin Meng, Ph.D. student in Bao’s group and a co-author, said that a follow-up effort that involved aligning the laser waves with a single image of the real space confirmed that the differences were “spontaneous and directly detectable different phase choices from run to run.”
“It’s exciting that our optical measurements allow us to see this unique transition simultaneously in space and in real space,” said Meng.
“This Is Only the Beginning”
When discussing the scientific results of the success, the RPI team highlighted the benefits of studying quantum phenomena, such as supersolids created by lasers, under “more practical conditions” than before, in very complex experimental settings.
“This gives us a new way to study how complex quantum order arises in nonlinearly driven systems,” Bao explained. “It brings events that were once measured in specialized laboratories into an accessible and manageable environment.”
In addition to basic science, the team said that their experimental success could have practical applications in photonics, optical computing, information processing, and other quantum-based technology. They also suggest that this unusual state of matter involves multiple methods of light production, which could support research into improved, wearable lasers.
Discussing the flexibility of their configuration, Professor Bao’s team realized that it could be extended to create more complex geometries. If successful, such adaptive structures can lead to learning in ‘richer’ ways, “including flexibility and other interactive activities.”
“Now we have a platform where we can not only look at these exotic states but also design and control them,” the professor explained. “That opens up a lot of interesting avenues for basic science and future science.”
“This is just the beginning,” Bao added.
The study “Hybrid perovskite-nanograting photonic architecture enables supersolidity at room temperature” was published in Natural nanotechnology.
Christopher Plain is a fiction and non-fiction writer and Chief Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him X, learn about his books at plainfiction.comor email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.
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