Phys.org June 3, 2019
An international team of researchers (USA – Yale University, New Zealand) used a special approach to indirectly monitor a superconducting artificial atom, with three microwave generators irradiating the atom enclosed in a 3-D cavity made of aluminum. Microwave radiation stirs the artificial atom as it is simultaneously being observed, resulting in quantum jumps. They amplified the tiny quantum signal of these jumps and monitored it in real time which enabled the researchers to see a sudden absence of detection photons which was a warning of a quantum jump. Despite its observation, coherence increased during the jump. While quantum jumps appear discrete and random in the long run, reversing a quantum jump means the evolution of the quantum state possesses, in part, a deterministic and not random character. In addition to its fundamental impact, the discovery is a potential major advance in understanding and controlling quantum information…read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLEÂ
Yale researchers have found a way to catch and save Schrödinger’s famous cat, the symbol of quantum superposition and unpredictability. Credit: Kat Stockton