European physicists have won the race to observe zitterbewegung, the violent trembling motion of an elementary particle that was predicted by Erwin Schrödinger in 1930. To observe this phenomenon, the team simulated the behaviour of a free electron with a single, laser-manipulated calcium ion trapped in an electrodynamic cage.
They took this approach because it is currently impossible to detect the quivering of a free electron, which has an amplitude of just 1013 m and a frequency of 1021 Hz. Computational simulations are also ruled out, because today's computers have insufficient power and memory capabilities.
Bron: PhysicsWorld
Lees verder: http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/41352
