A new quantum state of matter characterised by chiral currents discovered at Elettra





 		  
A study published in Nature on February 7, 2024, resulting from a collaboration between Elettra Synchrotron Trieste, Ca' Foscari University, CNR-IOM, and other national and international institutions, has revealed the existence of a state of matter characterized by a quantum phenomenon called chiral current.

The discovery, facilitated by Elettra's synchrotron radiation and analyses conducted on the APE-Low Energy beamline, could pave the way for the development of a new type of electronics utilizing chiral currents as carriers of information instead of electron charge.
 
The study verified for the first time the existence of this quantum state, which had been predicted theoretically. "We found that this phenomenon can exist in low-dimensional systems and at the surfaces of quantum materials," explains Federico Mazzola, first author of the paper. "I think this was possible thanks to the combination of the spectroscopy tools we find on the APE-LE beamline together with the synchrotron light offered by Elettra."
Last Updated on Wednesday, 28 February 2024 16:59