A team led by the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory has used sophisticated neutron scattering techniques to detect an elusive quantum state known as the Higgs amplitude mode in a two-dimensional material.
The Higgs amplitude mode is a condensed matter cousin of the Higgs boson, the storied quantum particle theorized in the 1960s and proven experimentally in 2012. It is one of a number of quirky, collective modes of matter found in materials at the quantum level. By studying these modes, condensed matter researchers have recently uncovered new quantum states known as quasiparticles, including the Higgs mode.
These studies provide unique opportunities to explore quantum physics and apply its exotic effects in advanced technologies such as spin-based electronics, or spintronics, and quantum computing.
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