– A semiconductor made from indium gallium arsenide has set a new duration record for a material that repeats itself through time
– The oscillations sustained by the experiment lasted at least 40 minutes, setting a new benchmark in the field
– Time crystals are repetitive units of matter that repeat through time, similar to diamonds, sapphires, and quartze
– They are characterized by interactions between orbiting electrons and atomic nuclei, resulting in a non-linear pattern
– Scientists have previously observed continuous time crystal behavior lasting only a few milliseconds in the quantum fog of Bose-Einstein condensate
– A molecular wind chime was used in the experiment, allowing for the emergence of a slow, back-and-forth pattern to occur
– Through tweaks in conditions, the oscillations can shift dramatically from just a few seconds to nearly a minute
– This new solid-state version of time crystals opens the way to new kinds of hardware that provide precise frequency measures.