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Article: Atom laser demonstrated in chilled drips. (condensate of sodium atoms)
- Article from:
- Science News
- Article date:
- February 1, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Unlike an ordinary, incandescent bulb, a laser produces light of a single wavelength. Moreover, the emitted light waves are coherent, meaning that all of the energy peaks and troughs are precisely in step.
Now, a team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has demonstrated experimentally that a cloud consisting of millions of atoms can also be made coherent. Instead of flying about and colliding randomly, the atoms display coordinated behavior, acting as if the entire assemblage were a single entity.
According to quantum mechanics, atoms can behave like waves. Thus, two overlapping clouds made up of atoms in coherent states should produce a zebra-striped ...