PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Listening with 1 atom

Weizmann Institute scientists set a new record for measuring magnetic vibrations using the spin of a single atom: 100 times more accurate than the previous record

2011-05-26
(Press-News.org) The lab, though it may seem quiet and insulated, can be as full of background noise as a crowded train station when we're trying to catch the announcements. Our brains can filter out the noise and focus on the message up to a certain point, but turning up the volume on the loudspeakers – improving the signal-to-noise ratio – helps as well.

Separating out the signal from the noise – increasing one while reducing the other – is so basic that much of scientific research could not take place without it. One common method, developed by the physicist Robert Dicke at Princeton University, is based on a principle similar to the one that enables radio broadcasts to pass through the noisy atmosphere. In short, one modulates electric waves (which correspond to the sound waves) one wishes to send over long distances, adding them on top of a high-frequency wave. To listen to the broadcast, one must have a receiver that is tuned to the frequency of the carrier wave (that numbered band on the FM dial), which then splits the two waves apart and amplifies the second "rider" wave – the music or talk we want to hear.

The method used by the physics labs is called "locked-in amplification." Here, too, a low-frequency, measured signal "rides" a high-frequency wave. A locked-in amplifier singles out the specific wave from the rest of the noise, "locking" onto the required signal and enabling scientists to make all sorts of accurate measurements.

To obtain good spatial resolution, one should measure with the smallest possible detector; one can't get much smaller than a single atom. The world of single atoms, however, is governed by the laws of quantum physics, and any sort of observation in the quantum world is a complex undertaking. The Heisenberg uncertainty principle, one of the cornerstones of quantum theory, sets limits on our ability to measure with any kind of precision. But that very theory contains some clues as to how these limits can be approached.

Dr. Roee Ozeri and research students Shlomi Kotler, Nitzan Akerman, Yinnon Glickman and Anna Keselman in the Weizmann Institute's Physics of Complex Systems Department applied the rules of quantum mechanics to a single atomic-ion detector, building a quantum version of a locked-in amplifier. Using the ions' spin as a sensor, they were able to measure magnetic vibrations with a spatial resolution of a just few nanometers (a few billionths of a meter). The sensitivity of this measurement was extremely high: around 100 times better than any previous such measurement. This technique, says Ozeri, could be used in physics labs around the world to improve the sensitivity of all sorts of quantum sensors.

INFORMATION:

Dr. Roee Ozeri's research is supported by the Yeda-Sela Center for Basic Research; the Wolfson Family Charitable Trust; David Dickstein, France; and Martin Kushner Schnur, Mexico.

The Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, is one of the world's top-ranking multidisciplinary research institutions. Noted for its wide-ranging exploration of the natural and exact sciences, the Institute is home to 2,700 scientists, students, technicians and supporting staff. Institute research efforts include the search for new ways of fighting disease and hunger, examining leading questions in mathematics and computer science, probing the physics of matter and the universe, creating novel materials and developing new strategies for protecting the environment.

Weizmann Institute news releases are posted on the World Wide Web at http://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il, and are also available at http://www.eurekalert.org.

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Immune system release valve

2011-05-26
The molecular machines that defend our body against infection don't huff and puff, but some of them The molecular machines that defend our body against infection don't huff and puff, but some of them apparently operate on the same principle as a steam engine. Weizmann Institute scientists have discovered a mechanism that controls inflammation similarly to a steam-engine valve: Just when the inflammatory mechanism that protects cells against viruses reaches its peak of activity, the molecular "steam-release valve" interferes, restoring this mechanism to its resting state, ...

Sustainable 'bio-derived' jet fuel industry is achievable

2011-05-26
Establishing an economically and environmentally beneficial, 'bio-derived' Australian and New Zealand aviation fuels industry is a viable proposition, according to a report compiled by CSIRO in collaboration with the region's major aviation industry players.The report, Flight Path to Sustainable Aviation, predicts that over the next 20 years a new, sustainable, Australia-New Zealand aviation fuels industry could cut greenhouse gas emissions by 17 per cent, generate more than 12,000 jobs and reduce Australia's reliance on aviation fuel imports by $2 billion per annum. "This ...

Experts quantify melting glaciers' effect on ocean currents

2011-05-26
A team of scientists from the University of Sheffield and Bangor University have used a computer climate model to study how freshwater entering the oceans at the end of the penultimate Ice Age 140,000 years ago affected the parts of the ocean currents that control climate. A paper based on the research, co-authored by Professor Grant Bigg, Head of the University of Sheffield's Department of Geography, his PhD student Clare Green, and Dr Mattias Green, a Senior Research fellow at Bangor University's School of Ocean Sciences, is currently featured as an Editor's Highlight ...

Vitamin D increases speed of sperm cells

2011-05-26
Vitamin D is important for optimal reproductive function in both animals and humans. It has long been known that serum vitamin D level is important for reproductive function in various animals, but now researchers from the University of Copenhagen and Copenhagen University Hospital have shown that this relationship can also be demonstrated in humans. A new study conducted in 300 normal men showed a positive correlation between the percentage of motile sperm and serum vitamin D levels. The study was recently published in the scientific journal Human Reproduction, and showed ...

Quantum sensor tracked in human cells could aid drug discovery

Quantum sensor tracked in human cells could aid drug discovery
2011-05-26
Groundbreaking research has shown a quantum atom has been tracked inside a living human cell and may lead to improvements in the testing and development of new drugs. Professor Lloyd Hollenberg from the University of Melbourne's School of Physics who led the research said it is the first time a single atom encased in nanodiamond has been used as a sensor to explore the nanoscale environment inside a living human cell. "It is exciting to see how the atom experiences the biological environment at the nanoscale," he said. "This research paves the way towards a new class ...

Enzyme prevents fatal heart condition associated with athletes

2011-05-26
Scientists have discovered an important enzyme molecule that may prevent fatal cardiac disorders associated with cardiac hypertrophy – the leading cause of sudden cardiac death in young athletes. Cardiac hypertrophy is a disease of the heart muscle where a portion of the tissue is thickened without any obvious cause. It is commonly linked to high blood pressure (hypertension) and excessive exercises and results in a shrinking of the heart chamber and a reduction of its blood-pumping volume. The condition is also associated with fatal cardiac disorders related to irregular ...

Research says 9/11 produced permanent shift to Republican party among new young US voters

2011-05-26
Research led by the University of Warwick's Centre for Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy has found that not only did the events of 9/11 produce an immediate shift in favour of the Republican party among new young US voters but that shift persisted into later years. The research shows that party strategists should focus on winning over voters when they are young. The researchers Professor Sharun Mukand, from the University of Warwick, and Professor Ethan Kaplan, from Stockholm University and the University of Maryland, looked at whether the mere act of registering ...

Arrival of direct antiviral agent therapy for hepatitis C sparks debate of who to treat first

2011-05-26
For many patients with the hepatitis C virus (HCV), direct antiviral agents (DAA) offer a potential cure for the disease. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently approved two new DAAs, telaprevir and boceprevir, and with that clinicians must now decide who should be the first to receive this treatment. Discussion of this timely topic is now available in the June issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates up to 170,000 million ...

Trash to treasure: Turning steel-mill waste into bricks

2011-05-26
Scientists are reporting development and successful testing of a promising new way of using a troublesome byproduct of the global steel industry as raw materials for bricks that can be used in construction projects. Their study appears in ACS' Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research. In the report, Ana Andrés and colleagues note that steel mills around the world produce vast quantities of waste dust each year — 8 million – 12 million tons in the United States, for instance, and 700,000 tons in the European Union countries. The dust often is converted into a rock-like ...

Research study reveals profile for female drunk-drivers

2011-05-26
Female drink-drivers are more likely to be older, better-educated and divorced, widowed or separated, research has shown. The study by academics at The University of Nottingham found that emotional factors and mental health problems were common triggers in alcohol-related offences committed by women. And they also discovered that rehabilitation programmes that force women to face the consequences of their crime can intensify their feelings of guilt and shame, leading them to turn to alcohol and increasing the risk that they will re-offend. In a paper to be published ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Exercise as an anti-ageing intervention to avoid detrimental impact of mental fatigue

UMass Amherst Nursing Professor Emerita honored as ‘Living Legend’

New guidelines aim to improve cystic fibrosis screening

Picky eaters by day, buffet by night: Butterfly, moth diets sync to plant aromas

Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Leanne Redman honored with the E. V. McCollum Award from the American Society for Nutrition

CCNY physicists uncover electronic interactions mediated via spin waves

Researchers’ 3D-printing formula may transform future of foam

Nurture more important than nature for robotic hand

Drug-delivering aptamers target leukemia stem cells for one-two knockout punch

New study finds that over 95% of sponsored influencer posts on Twitter were not disclosed

New sea grant report helps great lakes fish farmers navigate aquaculture regulations

Strain “trick” improves perovskite solar cells’ efficiency

How GPS helps older drivers stay on the roads

Estrogen and progesterone stimulate the body to make opioids

Dancing with the cells – how acoustically levitating a diamond led to a breakthrough in biotech automation

Machine learning helps construct an evolutionary timeline of bacteria

Cellular regulator of mRNA vaccine revealed... offering new therapeutic options

Animal behavioral diversity at risk in the face of declining biodiversity

Finding their way: GPS ignites independence in older adult drivers

Antibiotic resistance among key bacterial species plateaus over time

‘Some insects are declining but what’s happening to the other 99%?’

Powerful new software platform could reshape biomedical research by making data analysis more accessible

Revealing capillaries and cells in living organs with ultrasound

American College of Physicians awards $260,000 in grants to address equity challenges in obesity care

Researchers from MARE ULisboa discover that the European catfish, an invasive species in Portugal, has a prolonged breeding season, enhancing its invasive potential

Rakesh K. Jain, PhD, FAACR, honored with the 2025 AACR Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research

Solar cells made of moon dust could power future space exploration

Deporting immigrants may further shrink the health care workforce

Border region emergency medical services in migrant emergency care

Resident physician intentions regarding unionization

[Press-News.org] Listening with 1 atom
Weizmann Institute scientists set a new record for measuring magnetic vibrations using the spin of a single atom: 100 times more accurate than the previous record