Physicists use classical concepts to decipher strange quantum behaviors in an ultracold gas – Phys.org

There they were, in all their weird quantum glory: ultracold lithium atoms in the optical trap operated by UC Santa Barbara undergraduate student Alec Cao and his colleagues in David Weld’s atomic physics group. Held by lasers in a regular, lattice formation and “driven” by pulses of energy, these atoms were doing crazy things.
“It was a bit bizarre,” Weld said. “Atoms would get pumped in one direction. Sometimes they would get pumped in another direction. Sometimes they would tear apart and ma…

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