Research breakthrough means warp speed 'Unruh effect' can finally be
tested in lab settings

Date:
May 9, 2022
Source:
University of Waterloo
Summary:
A major hurdle for work at the forefront of fundamental physics
is the inability to test cutting-edge theories in a laboratory
setting. But a recent discovery opens the door for scientists to
see ideas in action that were previously only understood in theory
or represented in science fiction.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
A major hurdle for work at the forefront of fundamental physics is the inability to test cutting-edge theories in a laboratory setting. But a
recent discovery opens the door for scientists to see ideas in action
that were previously only understood in theory or represented in science fiction.


==========================================================================
One such theory is on the Unruh effect. When astronauts in a spacecraft
undergo super strong acceleration and see the light of stars stream by,
then the Unruh effect is an additional warm glow on top of the streaming light.First predicted by Canadian physicist Bill Unruh, this effect
is closely related to the glow from black holes predicted by Stephen
Hawking. This is because black holes strongly accelerate everything
towards them.

"Black holes are believed to be not entirely black," says Barbara Soda,
a PhD student in physics at the University of Waterloo. "Instead, as
Stephen Hawking discovered, black holes should emit radiation. This is
because, while nothing else can escape a black hole, quantum fluctuations
of radiation can." Similar to how the Hawking effect needs a black hole,
the Unruh effect requires enormous accelerations to produce a significant
glow. The Unruh effect was therefore thought to be so weak that it would
be impossible to measure with the accelerations that can be achieved in experiments with current technology.

The research team found an innovative way to experiment on the Unruh
effect through a novel use of high-intensity lasers. They discovered that shining a high-intensity laser on an accelerated particle can amplify
the Unruh effect so much that it actually becomes measurable.

In an unexpected twist, the team also discovered that by delicately
balancing acceleration and deceleration, one should even be able to make accelerated matter transparent.

The ability to experiment on the Unruh effect as well as on the new
phenomenon of acceleration-induced transparency provide a big boost for physicists, who have long been searching for ways to unify Einstein's
theory of general relativity with quantum mechanics.

"The theory of general relativity and the theory of quantum mechanics are currently still somewhat at odds, but there has to be a unifying theory
that describes how things function in the universe," says co-author
Achim Kempf, a professor of applied mathematics and member of the
Institute for Quantum Computing at Waterloo. "We've been looking for a
way to unite these two big theories, and this work is helping to move
us closer by opening up opportunities for testing new theories against experiments." The team is now setting out to conduct further laboratory experiments. They are also excited by the impacts of the research on some
of the fundamental questions about physics and the nature of the universe.

"For over 40 years, experiments have been hindered by an inability to
explore the interface of quantum mechanics and gravity," says co-author Vivishek Sudhir, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at
the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an affiliate of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO). "We have here a
viable option to explore this interface in a laboratory setting. If we
can figure out some of these big questions, it could change everything."

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Waterloo. Note:
Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Barbara Soda, Vivishek Sudhir, Achim Kempf. Acceleration-Induced
Effects
in Stimulated Light-Matter Interactions. Physical Review Letters,
2022; 128 (16) DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.128.163603 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/05/220509100938.htm

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