What are time crystals and why are they important?



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There is a state of matter that emulates a crystalline structure not only in space but also in the fourth dimension, in time. Scientists from the universities of Granada, Spain, and Tübingen, Germany, have discovered a new way to form time crystals from extreme fluctuations in the physical systems of many particles. This discovery is particularly important in areas such as metrology, for designing more accurate clocks, or for quantum computation, where time crystals can be used to simulate ground states or design more robust quantum computers, the scientists explained.

In time crystals, atoms repeat the formula across the fourth dimension, time, unlike conventional crystals (e.g. diamonds), which have atoms arranged in a repetitive spatial structure. These new temporary crystals are characterized by periodic movements over time.

Researchers from the Department of Electromagnetics and Mass Physics at the University of Granada have shown in their study that some dynamic phase transitions that occur with rare fluctuations in many physical systems spontaneously break translational symmetry over time. (Translational symmetry expresses that space is homogeneous. An event unfolding in one place in the universe will take place in the same way in another part of the universe.)

Einstein’s theory of relativity teaches us that time is flexible and is inextricably linked to space in a whole, which we know as space-time. However, this unification is partial because time is special in many ways, the scientists suggest. We can move back and forth between any two points in space, but we cannot visit the past.

In their study, the researchers proposed a hitherto unexplored path to the construction of time crystals based on the recent observation of the spontaneous breaking of temporal translational symmetry in the fluctuations of multiparticle systems.

Source: businessman.com.

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