19 March 2024
By MICHELLE STARR
An elusive behavior of electrons has finally been isolated from more mundane electron activity in a real-world material.
A team of physicists led by Ryuhei Oka of Ehime University has measured what are known as Dirac electrons in a superconducting polymer called bis(ethylenedithio)-tetrathiafulvalene. These are electrons that exist under conditions that effectively make them massless, allowing them to behave more like photons and oscillate at the speed of light.
This discovery, the researchers say, will allow a better understanding of topological materials – quantum materials that behave as an electronic insulator on the inside and conductor on the outside.
Superconductors, semiconductors, and topological materials are all growing in relevance, not least for their potential applications in quantum computers. But there is a lot we still don't know about these materials and the way they behave.
Dirac electrons refer to common old electrons under extraordinary conditions which require a dose of special relativity for quantum behaviors to be understood. Here, the overlap of atoms puts some of their electrons into a strange space that allow them to jump around materials with excellent energy efficiency.
More:
https://www.sciencealert.com/light-speed-electrons-discovered-moving-in-4-dimensions-for-the-first-time
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