Objava članka “Cavity-mediated thermal control of metal-to-insulator transition in 1T-TaS2” v reviji Nature
Kvantni materiali imajo lastnost, da njihove makroskopske lastnosti izhajajo iz kvantnih mikroskopskih pojavov in jih ne moremo razumeti zgolj s pomočjo klasične fizike in kemije. Včasih se obnašajo povsem v nasprotju z intuicijo.V članku, ki je nedavno izšel v reviji Nature je skupina avtorjev iz Italije, IJS in Nemčije razkrila nenavaden kvantni efekt, kjer se lastnosti kvantnega materiala močno spremenijo, če ga vstavimo v votlino s hlajenimi zrcali. Eksperiment, ki je navidezno preprost, kaže na nenavadno veliko spremembo temperature prehoda med izolatorjem in kovino v kristalu 1T-TaS_2, ki je snov z zelo zanimivimi lastnostmi, tesno povezanimi s kvantno fiziko. Pojav je nenavaden zato, ker material med eksperimentom ni v kontaktu z okolico, vpliv zrcal pa nakazuje na močno sklopitev med elektroni v snovi in kvantnimi fluktuacijami elektromagnetnega polja oz. svetlobe v vakuumu – fotoni, kar posledično spremeni temperaturo prehoda.Efekt je povsem fundamentalne narave, a ima tudi potencialno uporabo, na primer za posebne senzorje. Pomembno je, da eksperiment odpira pot raziskavam novih kvantnih efektov, in izpostavlja 1T-TaS_2 v ospredje med zanimivimi kvantnimi materiali.Material je sintetizirala Petra Sutar z IJS, pri teoretičnem in eksperimentalnem delu pa sta sodelovala Peter Prelovšek in Dragan Mihailović.
The macroscopic properties of quantum materials arise from microscopic quantum phenomena and cannot be understood solely through classical physics and chemistry. Sometimes, they behave entirely counter to intuition. In an article recently published in the journal Nature, a group of authors from Italy, the IJS (Jožef Stefan Institute), and Germany revealed an unusual quantum effect, where the properties of a quantum material change significantly when it is placed in a cavity with cooled mirrors. The experiment, seemingly straightforward, demonstrates a remarkably large shift in the transition temperature between insulator and metal in a crystal of1T-TaS2, a substance which is known for its very intriguing quantum properties. The observations are unusual because the material during the experiment is not in contact with its surroundings, and the influence of the mirrors implies a strong coupling between the motion of electrons in the crystal and quantum fluctuations of the electromagnetic field – or light- in vacuum, which almost magically alter the transition temperature. The effect is entirely of a fundamental nature but also holds potential applications, such as for specialized sensors. Importantly, the experiment paves the way for research into new quantum effects and highlights 1T-TaS2 as a very quantum material. The material was synthesized by Petra Sutar at IJS, while Peter Prelovšek and Dragan Mihailović collaborated on the theoretical and experimental aspects.
