Using advanced mathematical techniques, physicists from Rice University have proven the theoretical possibility of the existence of paraparticles that are neither bosons nor fermions. The study was published in the journal Nature.
Since the advent of quantum mechanics, scientists have believed that all particles can be divided into two main types: bosons and fermions. These categories differ in their behavior: bosons can occupy a single quantum state an unlimited number of times, while fermions obey the Pauli exclusion principle. According to this principle, two electrons with the same spin cannot be in the same energy orbital.
However, later scientists proposed the existence of paraparticles, which are particles with unique properties that differ from those of bosons and fermions. Theories about paraparticles began to develop in the mid-20th century, but by the 1970s it was believed that they either did not exist or could be explained using already known categories of particles.
Professor Caden Hazzard and his colleague Dr. Using complex mathematical techniques such as the Yang-Baxter equation and group theory, Zhiyuan Wang showed that paraparticles can exist within the known laws of physics. They created models in which these particles appear in condensed matter systems like magnets.
“Particles are important not only as fundamental elements of nature, but also in defining the structure of various materials,” Hazzard said.
Researchers discovered that paraparticles behave in an unusual way: when they change their position relative to other particles, they also change their internal state. This discovery opens up new opportunities for the study of similar phenomena in condensed matter systems and possibly their applications in quantum computing and information transfer.
Although this work is only a first step, scientists believe that further development of the theory could lead to experimental confirmation of the existence of paraparticles.
“We don’t know where this will go yet, but I’m sure it will be an exciting ride,” Hazzard said.
Previously, scientists for the first time measured Quantum geometry of electrons.
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Source: Gazeta
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