Researchers Link Quantum Entanglement and Topology
For the first time, researchers from the Structured Light Laboratory (School of Physics) at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, led by Professor Andrew Forbes, collaborated with string theorist Robert de Mello Koch from Huzhou University in China (formerly from Wits University). They demonstrated the remarkable feat of perturbing pairs of quantum entangled particles, separated in space yet connected, without changing their shared characteristics.
Researchers link quantum entanglement and topology: the connection between the photons
Lead author Pedro Ornelas, an MSc student in the structured light laboratory, explains, “We reached this experimental breakthrough by entangling two identical photons and adjusting their shared wave-function. This adjustment revealed their structure or topology only when considering the photons as a unified unit.”
The connection between the photons, established through quantum entanglement known as ‘spooky action at a distance’, allows particles to influence each other’s measurements despite being far apart.
Published in Nature Photonics on January 8, 2024, the research explores topology’s role in preserving properties. It’s akin to reshaping a coffee mug into a doughnut; despite changes, a consistent topological feature, like a hole, remains unchanged.
Forbes explains, “Our photon entanglement is like clay in a potter’s hands—it’s malleable, yet some features persist.”
Skyrmion topology, initially studied by Tony Skyrme in the 1980s, represents field configurations displaying particle-like traits. In this context, topology refers to a property of the fields, akin to fabric texture, remaining constant regardless of direction.
Modern materials
These concepts are observed in modern materials and even optical analogs using laser beams. In condensed matter physics, skyrmions are recognized for stability, impacting data storage advancements.
“We hope our quantum-entangled skyrmions lead to transformative advances,” says Forbes. The research challenges the notion of skyrmions as localized entities, suggesting their topology is nonlocal and shared among separated entities.
The researchers utilize topology as a framework to classify entangled states, expanding this groundbreaking concept.
Dr. Isaac Nape, a co-investigator, envisions, “This fresh perspective can act as a labeling system for entangled states, resembling an alphabet!”
Nape further elucidates, “Similar to how we differentiate objects like spheres, doughnuts, and handcuffs based on their number of holes, our quantum skyrmions possess distinct characteristics determined by their topology.”
The team anticipates this could become a potent tool, introducing new quantum communication protocols using topology as an alphabet for processing quantum information through entanglement-based channels.
These findings are crucial as researchers have long struggled to preserve entangled states. The enduring topology, even as entanglement weakens, hints at a potential new encoding mechanism. This mechanism could leverage entanglement, particularly in scenarios where traditional encoding methods falter due to minimal entanglement.
“So, we’re focusing our research on defining these protocols and broadening the scope of topological nonlocal quantum states,” says Forbes.
Read the original article on sciencedaily.
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