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A Newly Seen Quantum Symmetry Can Lead To Insights To The Workings Of The Universe

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If you work up from first principles, much of what we understand about the Universe and how it works is through symmetries. If a transformation is symmetric, the properties of a system can be retained if the system is transformed. A research team from the Washington University in St. Louis has shown for one of the first times a new type of symmetry in quantum systems. This experiment may lead to further advancements in physics, especially in the realm of quantum computing.

There are various ways that a system can be symmetric. P, or parity, symmetry means that the orientation can be swapped. Such a symmetry is what we see in our bodies. Our right hand is a mirror image of our left hand. C, or charge, symmetry means that each particle is swapped with its own anti-particle, effectively changing its charge. Finally, T, or time, symmetry is time, meaning that the system follows the same laws of physics whether the system runs forwards or backwards in time.

Understanding symmetries within the Universe allows us to construct various laws of physics, from the conservation of energy or the conservation of momentum.

Symmetries are often broken, especially when looking at one of these properties at a time. However, the Standard Model predicts that together, these symmetries should hold. This is called CPT symmetry.

The research, from the lab of Dr. Kater Murch at Washington University in St. Louis and led by Dr. Mahdi Naghiloo shows for one of the first times PT (or parity-time) symmetry being held in a quantum system.

The group used a qubit - or a superconducting circuit - to make a three-state quantum system. This system has three excited states. The first typically decays to the ground state, while the other two are coupled. The team was able to select only instances where the qubit did not decay into the ground state which led to the effective PT symmetry.

Exploration of PT symmetry - both when it holds and when it is broken - can lead to deeper understandings of the world of quantum physics.

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