The discovery of the Higgs boson has been a captivating journey for physicists worldwide since the particle was first detected in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) about twelve years ago.

This monumental finding, confirming the existence of the elusive particle theorized almost half a century prior, has unlocked new avenues of exploration and understanding in particle physics.

Despite dedicated research, the properties of this enigmatic particle remain somewhat shrouded in mystery.

Today, the scientific community embraces a new breakthrough that brings us a step closer to understanding the origin of the Higgs boson.

This exciting breakthrough comes from an international group of theoretical physicists, including members from the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

These scientists have pooled their expertise and resources in a concerted effort to unravel the complexities of the Higgs boson.

For many years, the Higgs boson has remained the crowning glory of discoveries made with the Large Hadron Collider.

Yet, understanding its properties has proven to be a colossal challenge, mainly due to the scientific hurdles encountered during experimental and computational studies.

Established in the 1970s, the Standard Model is a theoretical framework designed to explain the elementary particles of matter accurately.

From quarks to electrons, this model has been instrumental in understanding how various electromagnetic and nuclear forces interact.

The Higgs boson, discovered thanks to the LHC, is the coveted jewel of the Standard Model. It holds a pivotal role in the mechanism that bestows masses to other elementary particles.

Without the Higgs field, particles would not have mass, and the universe as we know it would be drastically different.

Dr. Rene Poncelet from the IFJ PAN, part of this important research, provides clarity on the significance of their work.

We have focused on the theoretical determination of the Higgs boson cross section in gluon-gluon collisions. These collisions are responsible for the production of about 90% of the Higgs, traces of whose presence have been registered in the detectors of the LHC accelerator, Poncelet explained.

This work delves deeper into the quantum realm, where interactions are governed by the rules of quantum mechanics, offering deeper insights into the fundamental workings of our universe.

One of the co-authors of this research, Prof. Michal Czakon from the RWTH, explains why their work is a scientific achievement.

The essence of our work was the desire to take into account, when determining the active cross section for the production of Higgs bosons, certain corrections that are usually neglected because ignoring them significantly simplifies the calculations, Czakon claims.

Its the first time we have succeeded in overcoming the mathematical difficulties and determining these corrections.

This finding is a triumph over mathematical challenges and a testament to the rigorous and meticulous nature of scientific inquiry.

This work has contributed to a more profound understanding of the Higgs bosons and opened avenues for further research.

The teams findings indicate that the mechanisms responsible for the formation of Higgs bosons, at least for now, show no signs of diverging from the established physics.

However, questions still abound:

Why do elementary particles carry the masses they do?

Why do they form families?

What exactly is dark matter?

What causes the dominance of matter over antimatter in the Universe?

These inquiries take us beyond the scope of the Standard Model, hinting at the existence of new physics. The pursuit to answer these questions is not just about theoretical curiosity; it has the potential to revolutionize our understanding of the universe and even lead to new technologies.

In the coming years, as more particle collisions are observed with the fourth research cycle of the LHC, reducing measurement uncertainties and bringing us closer to understanding the Higgs boson may be possible.

Each new cycle of experiments at the LHC is like turning a page in a giant book of the universe, revealing new insights and deepening our comprehension of the cosmos.

For now, the Standard Model remains secure, standing strong in the face of mysteries yet to be unraveled in the world of quantum mechanics. Lets brace ourselves; the quest to solve these mysteries promises to be nothing short of fascinating.

This journey reflects the enduring human spirit to explore the unknown, a spirit that has driven scientific and technological progress throughout history.

The full study was published in the journal Physical Review Letters.

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Higgs boson God particle still remains a quantum mystery after 12 years - Earth.com

At the very smallest scales, our intuitive view of reality no longer applies. It's almost as if physics is fundamentally indecisive, a truth that gets harder to ignore as we zoom in on the particles that pixelate our Univerrse.

In order to better understand it, physicists had to devise an entirely new framework to place it in, one based on probability over certainty. This is quantum theory, and it describes all sorts of phenomena, from entanglement to superposition.

Yet in spite of a century of experiments showing just how useful quantum theory is at explaining what we see, it's hard to shake our 'classical' view of the Universe's building blocks as reliable fixtures in time and space. Even Einstein was forced to ask his fellow physicist, "Do you really believe the Moon is not there when you are not looking at it?"

Numerous physicists have asked over the decades whether there is some way the physics we use to describe macroscopic experiences can also be used to explain all of quantum physics.

Now a new study has also determined that the answer is a big fat nope.

Specifically, neutrons fired in a beam in a neutron interferometer can exist in two places at the same time, something that is impossible under classical physics.

The test is based on a mathematical assertion called the Leggett-Garg inequality, which states that a system is always determinately in one or the other of the states available to it. Basically, Schrdinger's Cat is either alive or dead, and we are able to determine which of those states it is in without our measurements having an effect on the outcome.

Macro systems those we can reliably understand using classical physics alone obey the Leggett-Garg inequality. But systems in the quantum realm violate it. The cat is alive and dead simultaneously, an analogy for quantum superposition.

"The idea behind it is similar to the more famous Bell's inequality, for which the Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded in 2022," says physicist Elisabeth Kreuzgruber of the Vienna University of Technology.

"However, Bell's inequality is about the question of how strongly the behavior of a particle is related to another quantum entangled particle. The Leggett-Garg inequality is only about one single object and asks the question: how is its state at specific points in time related to the state of the same object at other specific points in time?"

The neutron interferometer involves firing a beam of neutrons at a target. As the beam travels through the apparatus, it splits in two, with each of the beam's prongs traveling separate paths until they are later recombined.

Leggett and Garg's theorem states that a measurement on a simple binary system can effectively give two results. Measure it again in the future, those results will be correlated, but only up to a certain point.

For quantum systems, Leggett and Garg's theorem no longer applies, permitting correlations above this threshold. In effect this would give researchers a way to distinguish whether a system needs a quantum theorem to be understood.

"However, it is not so easy to investigate this question experimentally," says physicist Richard Wagner of the Vienna University of Technology. "If we want to test macroscopic realism, then we need an object that is macroscopic in a certain sense, i.e. that has a size comparable to the size of our usual everyday objects."

In order to achieve this, the space between the two parts of the neutron beam in the interferometer is on a scale that's more macro than quantum.

"Quantum theory says that every single neutron travels on both paths at the same time," says physicist Niels Geerits of the Vienna University of Technology . "However, the two partial beams are several centimeters apart. In a sense, we are dealing with a quantum object that is huge by quantum standards."

Using several different measurement methods, the researchers probed the neutron beams at different times. And, sure enough, the measurements were too closely correlated for the classical rules of macro reality to be at play. The neutrons, their measurements suggested, were actually traveling simultaneously on two separate paths, separated by a distance of several centimeters.

It's just the latest in a long string of Leggett-Garg experiments that show we really do need quantum theory in order to describe the Universe we live in.

"Our experiment shows: Nature really is as strange as quantum theory claims," says physicist Stephan Sponar of the Vienna University of Technology. "No matter which classical, macroscopically realistic theory you come up with: It will never be able to explain reality. It doesn't work without quantum physics."

The research has been published in Physical Review Letters.

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Strange Motion of Neutrons Proves Nature Is Fundamentally Bizarre - ScienceAlert

Insider Brief

PRESS RELEASE The Quantum Innovation Summit returns for its second edition from February 25-27, 2025, at The H Hotel, with additional virtual participation via the QIS Event APP. Hosted by Vernewell Group, this prestigious event coincides with the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology, declared by the United Nations for 2025. Celebrating 100 years of quantum mechanics, the summit aims to catalyze global advancements and collaborations in quantum technologies, setting a transformative agenda for key industries worldwide.

Theme: Quantum Frontiers: Innovating for a Secure Future Building upon the formidable success of its inaugural edition, this years theme emphasizes the pivotal role of quantum technologies in tackling critical global challenges, from enhancing global security to promoting health and environmental sustainability. The Quantum Innovation Summit 2025 is dedicated to significantly elevating global awareness and accelerating the deployment of quantum technologies across critical sectors such as energy, aviation, cybersecurity, finance, defense, and space exploration.

Malak Trabelsi Loeb, Founder and President of Vernewell Group, reflects on the Summits goals: The second edition of the Quantum Innovation Summit is designed as a catalyst for profound industry transformations. By showcasing practical applications and encouraging the adoption of quantum technologies, we are not only celebrating a century of quantum mechanics but are actively shaping a future where these technologies are at the heart of industry innovation and global problem-solving. She adds: With this edition, we aim to catalyze a major leap forward, propelling quantum innovations to new heights and driving profound transformations across diverse industries.

Key Features of the Summit:

Official Academic Partner:We are excited to announce our partnership with the Center for Quantum and Topological Systems (CQTS) at New York University Abu Dhabi. This partnership is set to promote groundbreaking research and influential collaborations in quantum technologies.

Sponsorship and Exhibition Opportunities:For opportunities to sponsor, exhibit, or speak, please contact us at[emailprotected]. We aim to optimize ROI for our partners by transforming prospects into tangible outcomes.

Join Us:Do not miss this chance to ignite innovation, seize opportunities, and secure your future in the quantum realm. For more information, visitquantuminnovationsummit.com

About Vernewell Group

Vernewell Group Inc. oversees a portfolio of subsidiaries in key sectors such as space and deep tech, with an emphasis on quantum technology, cryptography, and artificial intelligence. Our corporate strategy centers on robust risk management and proactive growth initiatives. At Vernewell Group Inc., we focus on creating a diversified and synergistic ecosystem of companies and partnerships in the Middle East and North Africa. We aim to drive the success of our subsidiaries, ensuring they lead in their respective fields while contributing to the broader advancement of technology and education in the region. Our mission is to be a pivotal force in shaping the future of these high-tech industries, fostering innovation, and setting new standards of excellence with a human-centric approach.

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Dubai to Host the Second Edition of The Quantum Innovation Summit - The Quantum Insider

An extremely cold gas of strontium atoms is trapped in a web of light known as an optical lattice. The atoms are held in an ultrahigh-vacuum environment, which means there is almost no air or other gases present. This vacuum helps preserve the atoms' delicate quantum states, which are fragile. The red dot you see in the image is a reflection of the laser light used to create the atom trap.

Credit: K. Palubicki/NIST

In humankinds ever-ticking pursuit of perfection, scientists have developed an atomic clock that is more precise and accurate than any clock previously created. The new clock was built by researchers at JILA, a joint institution of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Colorado Boulder.

Enabling pinpoint navigation in the vast expanse of space as well as searches for new particles, this clock is the latest to transcend mere timekeeping. With their increased precision, these next-generation timekeepers could reveal hidden underground mineral deposits and test fundamental theories such as general relativity with unprecedented rigor. For atomic-clock architects, its not just about building a better clock; its about unraveling the secrets of the universe and paving the way for technologies that will shape our world for generations to come.

The worldwide scientific community is considering redefining the second, the international unit of time, based on these next-generation optical atomic clocks. Existing-generation atomic clocks shine microwaves on atoms to measure the second. This new wave of clocks illuminates atoms with visible light waves, which have a much higher frequency, to count out the second much more precisely. Compared with current microwave clocks, optical clocks are expected to deliver much higher accuracy for international timekeeping potentially losing only one second every 30 billion years.

But before these atomic clocks can perform with such high accuracy, they need to have very high precision; in other words, they must be able to measure extremely tiny fractions of a second. Achieving both high precision and high accuracy could have vast implications.

The new JILA clock uses a web of light known as an optical lattice to trap and measure tens of thousands of individual atoms simultaneously. Having such a large ensemble provides a huge advantage in precision. The more atoms measured, the more data the clock has for yielding a precise measurement of the second.

To achieve new record-breaking performance, the JILA researchers used a shallower, gentler web of laser light to trap the atoms, compared with previous optical lattice clocks. This significantly reduced two major sources of error effects from the laser light that traps the atoms, and atoms bumping into one another when they are packed too tightly.

The researchers describe their advances in Physical Review Letters.

This clock is so precise that it can detect tiny effects predicted by theories such as general relativity, even at the microscopic scale, said NIST and JILA physicist Jun Ye. Its pushing the boundaries of whats possible with timekeeping.

General relativity is Einsteins theory that describes how gravity is caused by the warping of space and time. One of the key predictions of general relativity is that time itself is affected by gravity the stronger the gravitational field, the slower time passes.

This new clock design can allow detection of relativistic effects on timekeeping at the submillimeter scale, about the thickness of a single human hair. Raising or lowering the clock by that minuscule distance is enough for researchers to discern a tiny change in the flow of time caused by gravitys effects.

This ability to observe the effects of general relativity at the microscopic scale can significantly bridge the gap between the microscopic quantum realm and the large-scale phenomena described by general relativity.

More precise atomic clocks also enable more accurate navigation and exploration in space. As humans venture farther into the solar system, clocks will need to keep precise time over vast distances. Even tiny errors in timekeeping can lead to navigation errors that grow exponentially the farther you travel.

If we want to land a spacecraft on Mars with pinpoint accuracy, we're going to need clocks that are orders of magnitude more precise than what we have today in GPS, said Ye. This new clock is a major step towards making that possible.

The same methods used to trap and control the atoms could also produce breakthroughs in quantum computing. Quantum computers need to be able to precisely manipulate the internal properties of individual atoms or molecules to perform computations. The progress in controlling and measuring microscopic quantum systems has significantly advanced this endeavor.

By venturing into the microscopic realm where the theories of quantum mechanics and general relativity intersect, researchers are cracking open a door to new levels of understanding about the fundamental nature of reality itself. From the infinitesimal scales where the flow of time becomes distorted by gravity, to the vast cosmic frontiers where dark matter and dark energy hold sway, this clocks exquisite precision promises to illuminate some of the universe's deepest mysteries.

We're exploring the frontiers of measurement science, Ye said. When you can measure things with this level of precision, you start to see phenomena that we've only been able to theorize about until now.

Paper: Alexander Aeppli, Kyungtae Kim, William Warfield, Marianna S. Safronova and Jun Ye. A clock with 8 1019 systematic uncertainty. Accepted for publication by Physical Review Letters. Preprint available at arxiv.org.

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Worlds Most Accurate and Precise Atomic Clock Pushes New Frontiers in Physics - NIST

This Thursday, July 4, 2024, is remarkable for a number of reasons. It happens to bejust one day before aphelion: the day where the Earth is at its most distant from the Sun as it revolves through the Solar System in its elliptical orbit. Its the 248th anniversary of when the United States officially declared independence from, and war on, the nation of Great Britain. And it marks the annual date when the wealthiest nation in the world sets off more explosivesin the form of fireworksthan any other.

Whether youre an amateur hobbyist, a professional installer, or simply a spectator, fireworks showsare driven by the same laws of physicsthat govern all of nature. Individual fireworks all contain the same four component stages: launch, fuse, burst charges, and stars. Without quantum physics, not a single one of them would be possible. Heres the science behind how every component of these spectacular shows works.

The anatomy of a firework consists of a large variety of elements and stages. However, the same four basic elements are the same across all types and styles of fireworks: the lift charge, the main fuse, a burst charge, and stars. Variations in the diameter of the launch tube, the length of the time-delay fuse, and the height of the fireworks are all necessary to ignite the stars with the proper conditions during the break.

The start of any firework is the launch aspect: the initial explosion that causes the lift. Ever sincefireworks were first inventedmore than a millennium ago, the same three simple ingredients have been at the heart of them: sulfur, charcoal, and a source of potassium nitrate. Sulfur is a yellow solid that occurs naturally in volcanically active locations, while potassium nitrate is abundant in natural sources like bird droppings or bat guano.

Charcoal, on the other hand, isnt the briquettes we commonly use for grilling, but the carbon residue left over from charring (or pyrolyzing) organic matter, such as wood. Once all the water has been removed from the charcoal, all three ingredients can be mixed together with a mortar and pestle. The fine, black powder that emerges is gunpowder, already oxygen-rich from the potassium nitrate.

The three main ingredients in black powder (gunpowder) are charcoal (activated carbon, at left), sulfur (bottom right) and potassium nitrate (top right). The nitrate portion of the potassium nitrate contains its own oxygen, which means that fireworks can be successfully launched and ignited even in the absence of external oxygen; they would work just as well on the Moon as they do on Earth.

With all those ingredients mixed together, theres a lot of stored energy in the molecular bonds holding the different components together. But theres a more stable configuration that these atoms and molecules could be rearranged into. The raw ingredientspotassium nitrate, carbon, and sulfurwill combust (in the presence of high-enough temperatures) to form solids such as potassium carbonate, potassium sulfate, and potassium sulfide, along gases such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and carbon monoxide.

All it takes to reach these high temperatures is a small heat source, like a match. The reaction is a quick-burning deflagration, rather than an explosion, which is incredibly useful in a propulsion device. The rearrangement of these atoms (and the fact that the fuel contains its own oxygen) allows the nuclei and electrons to rearrange their configuration, releasing energy and sustaining the reaction. Without the quantum physics of these rearranged bonds, there would be no way to release this stored energy.

The Macys Fourth of July fireworks celebration that takes place annually in New York City displays some of the largest and highest fireworks you can find in the United States of America and the world. This iconic celebration, along with all the associated lights and colors, is only possible because of the inescapable rules of quantum mechanics.

When that first energy release occurs, conventionally known as the lift charge, it has two important effects.

The upward acceleration needs to give your firework the right upward velocity to get it to a safe height for explosion, and the fuse needs to be timed appropriately to detonate at the peak launch height. A small fireworks show might have shells as small as 2 inches (5 cm) in diameter, which require a height of 200 feet (60 m), while the largest shows (like the one by the Statue of Liberty in New York) have shells as large as 3 feet (90 cm) in diameter, requiring altitudes exceeding 1000 feet (300 m).

Different diameter shells can produce different sized bursts, which require being launched to progressively higher altitudes for safety and visibility reasons. In general, larger fireworks must be launched to higher altitudes, and therefore require larger lift charges and longer fuse times to get there. The largest fireworks shells exceed even the most grandiose of the illustrations in this diagram.

The fuse, on the other hand, is the second stage and will be lit by the ignition stage of the launch.Most fusesrely on a similar black powder reaction to the one used in a lift charge, except the burning black powder core is surrounded by wrapped textile coated with either wax or lacquer. The inner core functions via the same quantum rearrangement of atoms and electron bonds as any black powder reaction, but the remaining fuse components serve a different purpose: to delay ignition.

The textile material is typically made of multiple woven and coated strings. The coatings make the device water resistant, so they can work regardless of weather. The woven strings control the rate of burning, dependent on what theyre made out of, the number and diameter of each woven string, and the diameter of the powder core. Slow-burning fuses might take 30 seconds to burn a single foot, while fast-burning fuses can burn hundreds of feet in a single second.

The three main configurations of fireworks, with lift charges, fuses, burst charges, and stars all visible. In all cases, a lift charge launches the firework upward from within a tube, igniting the fuse, which then burns until it ignites the burst charge, which heats and distributes the stars over a large volume of space.

The third stage, then, is the burst charge stage, which controls the size and spatial distribution of the stars inside. In general the higher you launch your fireworks and the larger-diameter your shells are, the larger your burst charge will need to be to propel the insides of the shell outward. In general, the interior of the firework will have a fuse connected to the burst charge, which is surrounded by the color-producing stars.

Theburst chargecan be as simple as another collection of black powder, such as gunpowder. But it could be far more complex, such as the much louder and more impressiveflash powder, or a multi-stage explosive that sends stars in multiple directions. By utilizing different chemical compounds that offer different quantum rearrangements of their bonds, you can tune your energy release, the size of the burst, and the distribution and ignition times of the stars.

Differently shaped patterns and flight paths are highly dependent on the configuration and compositions of the stars inside the fireworks themselves. This final stage is what produces the light and color of fireworks, and is where the most important quantum physics comes into play.

But the most interesting part is that final stage: where the stars ignite. The burst is what takes the interior temperatures to sufficient levelsto create the light and colorthat we associate with these spectacular shows. The coarse explanation is that you can take different chemical compounds, place them inside the stars, and when they reach a sufficient temperature, they emit light of different colors.

This explanation, though, glosses over the most important component: the mechanism of how these colors are emitted. When you apply enough energy to an atom, or molecule, you can excite or even ionize the electrons that conventionally keep it electrically neutral. When those excited electrons then naturally cascade downward in the atom, molecule, or ion, they emit photons, producing emission lines of a characteristic frequency. If they fall in the visible portion of the spectrum, the human eye is even capable of seeing them.

The traditional model of an atom, now more than 100 years old, is of a positively charged nucleus orbited by negatively charged electrons. Although the outdated Bohr model is where this picture comes from, we can arrive at a more accurate description simply by considering the electrons quantum uncertainty.

What determines which emission lines an element or compound possesses? Its simply the quantum mechanics of the spacing between the different energy levels inherent to the substance itself. For example, heated sodium emits a characteristic yellow glow, as it has two very narrow emission lines at 588 and 589 nanometers. Youre likely familiar with these if you live in a city, as most of those yellow-colored street lamps you see are powered by elemental sodium.

As applied to fireworks, there are a great variety of elements and compounds that can be utilized to emit a wide variety of colors. Different compounds of Barium, Sodium, Copper, and Strontium can produce colors covering a huge range of the visible spectrum, and the different compounds inserted in the fireworks stars are responsible for everything we see. In fact,the full spectrum of colors can be achievedwith just a handful of conventional compounds.

The interior of this curve shows the relationship between color, wavelength, and temperature in chromaticity space. Along the edges, where the colors are most saturated, a variety of elements, ions, and compounds can be shown, with their various emission lines marked out. Note that many elements/compounds have multiple emission lines associated with them, and all of these are used in various fireworks. Because of how easy it is to create barium oxide in a combustion reaction, certain firework colors, such as forest green and ocean green, remain elusive.

Whats perhaps the most impressive about all of this is that the color we see with the human eye is not necessarily the same as the color emitted by the fireworks themselves. For example, if you were to analyze the light emitted by a violet laser, youd find that the photons emerging from it were of a specific wavelength that corresponded to the violet part of the spectrum.

The quantum transitions that power a laser always result in photons of exactly the same wavelength, and our eyes see them precisely as they are, with the multiple types of cones we possess responding to that signal in such a way that our brain responds to construct a signal thats commensurate with the light possessing a violet color.

A set of Q-line laser pointers showcase the diverse colors and compact size that now are commonplace for lasers. By pumping electrons into an excited state and stimulating them with a photon of the desired wavelength, you can cause the emission of another photon of exactly the same energy and wavelength. This action is how the light for a laser is first created: by the stimulated emission of radiation.

But if you look at that same color that appears as violet not from a monochromatic source like a laser, but from your phone or computer screen, youll find that there are no intrinsically violet photons striking your eyes at all! Instead,as Chad Orzel has noted in the past,

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Our eyes construct what we perceive as color from the response of three types of cells in our retina, each sensitive to light of a particular range of colors. One is most sensitive to blue-ish light (short wavelength), one is most sensitive to red light (long wavelength), and the third to a sort of yellow-green. Based on how strongly each of these cells responds to incoming light, our brains construct our perception ofcolor.

In other words, the key to producing the fireworks display you want isnt necessarily to create light of a specific color that corresponds to a specific wavelength, but rather to create light that excites the right molecules in our body to cause our brain to perceive a particular color.

A violet laser emits photons of a very particular, narrow wavelength, as every photon carries the same amount of energy. This curve, shown in blue, emits violet photons only. The green curve shows how a computer screen approximates the same exact violet color by using a mix of different wavelengths of light. Both appear to be the same color to human eyes, but only one truly produces photons of the same color that our eyes perceive.

Fireworks might appear to be relatively simple explosive devices. Pack a charge into the bottom of a tube to lift the fireworks to the desired height, ignite a fuse of the proper length to reach the burst charge at the peak of its trajectory, explode the burst charge to distribute the stars at a high temperature, and then watch and listen to the show as the sound, light, and color washes over you.

Yet if we look a little deeper, we can understand how quantum physics underlies every single one of these reactions. Add a little bit extrasuch as propulsion or fuel inside each starand your colored lights can spin, rise, or thrust in a random direction. Make sure you enjoy your fourth of July safely, but also armed with the knowledge that empowers you to understand how the most spectacular human-made light show of the year truly works!

A version of this article first appeared in 2022. Happy 4th of July, everyone!

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The quantum physics behind fireworks displays - Big Think