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Ultracold atoms simulate a transition from a fluid to an insulator

Jan 3, 2002

Markus Greiner, Immanuel Bloch and colleagues trap ultracold atoms in a grid of laser light. Adjusting the grid changes the atoms from a freely spreading quantum fluid into an insulating state, reproducing a model of interacting matter.

Why it matters

The experiment makes quantum simulation tangible: a controllable quantum system recreates the behavior of another, rather than calculating it on an ordinary computer.

Markus Greiner · Immanuel Bloch · MPQ

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