Charles Q. Choi
A recent study suggests that events referred to by Einstein as “spooky” could occur at speeds exceeding 10,000 times the speed of light.
Atoms, electrons, and other fundamental particles of the universe exhibit quite strange behavior, entirely contrary to what we typically observe. For instance, an object can exist in two or more locations simultaneously or can spin in opposite directions at the same time.
A consequence of dark quantum physics is that objects can be interconnected, meaning that what happens to one object instantaneously affects another, a phenomenon known as “quantum entanglement.” This holds true regardless of the distance between the objects.
Einstein disagreed with the concept of quantum entanglement, labeling it as “spooky action at a distance.” However, there are debates around whether an object can emit a particle or signal at high speeds that influences another object, creating a sense of immediacy.
In the past, experiments have ruled out any skepticism regarding such signals from classical physics. However, one possibility remains – that a factor X could move faster than the speed of light.
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Speed of light (Image: opdi-technologies) |
To study this possibility, scientists in Geneva, Switzerland began with pairs of photons or light packets. These were split and transmitted via fiber optics provided by Swisscom to two stations in two Swiss villages approximately 11 miles (18 kilometers) apart. The stations confirmed that each pair of photons remained connected – by analyzing one photon, scientists could predict the properties of the other photon.
Any signal moving from one station to the other in 300 millionths of a second – the speed at which the stations could accurately measure photons – means that factor X must be traveling at speeds 10,000 times that of light.
Not only did Einstein dislike the concept of quantum entanglement, but he also stated that signals cannot travel faster than light. Nicolas Gisin, a physicist at the University of Geneva, remarked that any “spooky action” faster than light is unreasonable. Instead, he added, “what is interesting here is that nature can produce events occurring simultaneously at multiple locations.”
In a sense, these simultaneous events “seem to happen outside of space-time; it’s not something you can comprehend within space-time,” Gisin stated in an interview with LiveScience. “This is a phenomenon that the entire scientific community is meticulously studying.”
Gisin and his colleagues published their findings in the August 14 issue of the journal Nature.
