Insider Brief
- Researchers from Hebrew University and Cornell University have developed a new method to protect atomic spins from environmental noise, potentially advancing quantum sensors, navigation systems, and quantum information technologies.
- The team used laser light to synchronize atomic spin orientations in cesium vapor, achieving a ninefold increase in spin coherence time without requiring extreme cooling or complex magnetic tuning.
- The technique works in warm conditions and could enable more practical, robust, and precise quantum devices for use in medical imaging, space exploration, and GPS-independent navigation.
PRESS RELEASE — A powerful, new method to shield atomic spins from environmental “noise”—a major step toward improving the precision and durability of technologies like quantum sensors and navigation systems—has been developed by a team of physicists from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Department of Applied Physics and Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, in collaboration with the School of Applied and Engineering Physics at Cornell University.
As described in Physical Review Letters, the researchers achieved a ninefold increase in the time cesium atoms maintained their spin orientation. Atoms with unpaired electrons—such as those in cesium vapor—have a property of “spin” that interacts with magnetic fields and therefore be used for ultra-sensitive measurements of magnetic fields, gravity, and even brain activity.
Atoms collide with each other and their surroundings and lose their orientation (spin relaxation) from even the tiniest disturbance from surrounding atoms or container walls. Until now, protecting these spins from such interference has required complicated setups or worked only under very specific conditions resulting in data loss. The researchers are addressing the differences in the various spin configurations using laser light to maintain cooperative behavior among the spinning entities even at high magnetic fields, so they are synchronized.
“This approach opens a new chapter in protecting quantum systems from noise,” the researchers said. “By harnessing the natural motion of atoms and using light as a stabilizer, we can now preserve coherence across a broader range of conditions than ever before.”
This technique could significantly enhance devices that rely on atomic spins, including:
- Quantum sensors and magnetometers used in medical imaging, archaeology, and space exploration
- Precision navigation systems that don’t rely on GPS
- Quantum information platforms where spin stability is key to storing and processing information
Because the method works in “warm” environments and doesn’t require extreme cooling or complicated field tuning, it could be more practical for real-world applications than existing approaches.
The research builds on decades of work in atomic physics, but this simple, elegant solution—using light to coordinate atoms—is a leap forward. It may pave the way for more robust, accurate, and accessible quantum technologies in the near future.
The research paper titled “Optical Protection of Alkali-Metal Atoms from Spin Relaxation” is now published in Physical Review Letters and can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1103/fncz-b3yy
Researchers:
Avraham Berrebi1, Mark Dikopoltsev1,2, Ori Katz1, and Or Katz3
Institutions:
School of Applied and Engineering Physics, Cornell University
Department of Applied Physics, The Faculty of Science, The Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
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