Dwa eksperymenty kwantowe łamią czas – ujawniając rzeczywistość, która przeraża naukowców!

Did we misunderstand the nature of time? Perhaps you have heard of the phenomenon of quantum physics, known as superposition. It means that a particle exists simultaneously in many states until it is measured. However, superposition still raises many questions. How does a particle actually behave when it is in this surrealistic mixture of states? How does it look like and where does it know where to appear at the time of measurement? Well, what is exciting, two breakthrough quantum experiments delivered completely new observations about this mystery. And thus, they probably discovered areas of reality that have so far completely avoided our perception. This exciting discovery may help us find answers to some of the biggest questions of physics. So be sure to stay with us until the end to find out what scientists have revealed now. Children, how does time fly? Yes, but how exactly does it fly? At first glance, you might think that this question cannot be more banal. After all, in everyday life, we are used to the fact that the hands of the clock move only in one direction. In other words, time is an unstoppable line that moves irreversibly from the past to the future. In classical physics, for example, in the theory of relativity, time is a dimension that together with three spatial dimensions creates the so-called time-spatial continuum. But even here, it remains essentially one-dimensional. However, when we delve into the exciting world of quantum physics, we suddenly realize that everything looks completely different. To understand what time looks like in this world, we need to get to know the most important principle of quantum physics – superposition. Imagine throwing a coin. According to our classical understanding, it can land either with an eagle or a reed, but never on both at the same time. However, the quantum world is much stranger. Here, a particle such as a photon or an electron can actually exist in several states at the same time. In reference to the example of a coin, it means that it can actually show an eagle and a reed and that it changes only when you look at it. This superposition of states is known as superposition. It means that there is not only one constant state, but several possible states at the same time, until measurement or observation forces the system to choose one of the states. Now imagine that this superposition does not affect only the location or properties of the particle, but at the same time. And although this idea at first glance seems extremely far-reaching, it has been confirmed by two spectacular quantum experiments. Quantum switch experiment Usually, everything happens in clear order. When you get up in the morning and make yourself coffee, first you get up and then you make coffee. Of course, this example can be attributed to any other activity. The basic rule is that one thing follows another. In fact, this superior rule of the sequence seems so obvious to us that we practically never question it, because it is simply known and, above all, logical. However, in the first quantum experiment, known as the quantum switch, something amazing happens. A photon, i.e. a particle of light, is prepared in such a way that it reverses a known scheme and goes through two sequences at the same time. The experiment was conducted by scientists from the University of Queensland, and its results were published in renowned journals such as Physical Review Letters and Nature Communications. But how is this possible? Here's how. Scientists send a photon through two devices. While device A changes the polarization of light, i.e. the direction in which the light oscillates, device B performs another transformation of polarization. Usually, a photon would first go through device A, and then through device B, or vice versa. However, thanks to the art of quantum physics, it is possible to introduce a photon into a state in which it first goes through device A, and then through B, and also first through device B, and then through A. It's as if the photon moved both paths at the same time, and the key to this is another quantum particle that plays a controlling role. This controlling particle itself is in superposition, because it is both 0 and 1. Depending on whether it is 0 or 1, it determines the order in which the photon is sent by devices. However, since the controlling particle is in both states at the same time, the photon also experiences both sequences at the same time, and the result is the so-called superposition of sequences. In detail, the experiment can be configured so that the effect of the sequence is visible in the polarization or pattern of the photon's interference. If the sequence were constant, a pattern would be visible, but since it is not, it is visible to apply both patterns, which is a clear sign of superposition. In other words, the quantum world may undermine some of our fundamental rules, because when the rules of clear processes are bypassed, the cause and effect are no longer clearly defined. This is in stark contrast to our everyday experiences, but in quantum physics there is simply no reason for the order to be constant. In fact, some algorithms and quantum processes work even better when they use this uncertainty. When the past and the future overlap. The second experiment, however, takes a step further and has been developed to show that not only the position or state of the particle may be in superposition, but even the direction of time. In other words, the future and the past can overlap. It sounds a bit strange when you take it so literally. After all, we are used to the fact that things always move in one direction in time, i.e. from the past to the future. However, since states in the quantum world can overlap, as mentioned above, scientists have shown that a quantum system such as a photon can also move in two opposite directions of time at the same time. To do this, you need to create two possible time sequences, namely two different scenarios in which a photon can develop. This means that in one scenario it develops from state A to state B, so classically in the future, and in the other from state B to state A, as if it were moving backwards in time. Both directions of time are represented by different quantum operations. Photons are then introduced into the superposition of these two scenarios, and thus into a state in which they experience both directions of time at the same time. However, this does not happen with the help of a DeLorean and a stream capacitor, but by superposition in the space of quantum information. So we are not dealing with time travel in the classical sense. To illustrate this, we can imagine the whole as a film played back and forth at the same time, and scientists observe whether the image changes as a result. In reference to a real experiment, this means a measurement of what happened to the photon at the end. Depending on the direction of time, it would behave differently, but the experiment shows that the photon cannot be assigned to one direction of time. Instead, it shows a behavior that can only be explained when both directions of time exist simultaneously in superposition. For this purpose, experts used quantum circuits, in which you can control the order and direction of processes. The photon was sent through these circuits, in which, using quantum operations, a kind of clock direction was encoded. At the output, interference between forward and backward motion a pattern that can only occur when the directions of time are really imposed on each other. To put it simply, we can imagine it as a photon moving in two directions at the same time. On path 1 it is sent forward in time, from A to B, and on path 2 it is sent backward, from B to A. Both paths are indistinguishable and ultimately interfere with each other. The result shows that the photon behaved as if it were moving simultaneously in both directions of time. In classical physics, the direction of time is constant and is subject to the principle of cause and effect. However, the experiment shows that the direction of time in the quantum world may be undefined. The experiment therefore provides evidence that causality in the quantum world works fundamentally differently than we are used to. In detail, the direction of time may be an emergent phenomenon, something that occurs only as a result of many small quantum processes. At the deepest level of the laws of nature, there may not be a preferred direction of time, because it may occur only as a result of interaction. But what does it mean for us? After all, these experiments raise a few fundamental questions. Is time really just a straight line running from the past to the future? Or maybe our sense of time is just a very simplified perspective of a much more complex reality? If time in the quantum world is not linear, if events can occur simultaneously in different sequences, and the directions of time overlap, then our concept of cause and effect has no universal application. Because who knows, maybe in the end time is not what we always believed it was, but rather a phenomenon that is still incomprehensible, which emerges only from the quantum reality hidden from us. And what does it mean for our understanding of reality, freedom and consciousness? How do the assumptions of the future and the past affect free will? Can we really choose what will happen? Do all possibilities already exist at the same time? As you can see, quantum experiments start with one or two philosophical thought experiments, but in addition they also have a very practical application, especially in the field of quantum computing. Ultimately, quantum computers could take advantage of the possibility of performing operations in an indefinite order. It would be impossible in the case of classical computers. In addition, these discoveries could also help in the long-term perspective to overcome probably the biggest challenge in physics, namely the unification of quantum mechanics and gravity. Perhaps the key to this is to understand time as a multi-layered, elastic concept, which impressively demonstrates a breathtaking superposition. By the way, the subscribe button is in the perfect position just below our video. Just click the thumb up and subscribe not to miss any of our new videos. See you!