In a significant advancement for quantum physics, researchers have directly observed zero-point motion within a complex molecule for the first time. This phenomenon, where atoms perpetually vibrate even at absolute zero temperature, was previously considered beyond direct measurement.
The collaborative team, involving scientists from Goethe University Frankfurt, the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics, and the European X-ray Free-Electron Laser (European XFEL), focused on the molecule iodopyridine, which contains eleven atoms. Utilizing the high-intensity, ultrashort X-ray pulses from the European XFEL and a technique called Coulomb Explosion Imaging, they induced a controlled fragmentation of the molecule. Analysis of the resulting fragments allowed for the reconstruction of the molecule's original atomic arrangement and revealed the coordinated patterns of their vibrations.
Professor Till Jahnke of Goethe University stated, "The exciting aspect of our work is that we were able to observe that the atoms do not merely vibrate independently, but rather in a coordinated fashion, adhering to established patterns." This observation, made possible by the COLTRIMS reaction microscope developed in Frankfurt, offers deeper insights into quantum phenomena and has potential implications for material science and quantum computing.
The study, published in the journal Science, found that the iodopyridine molecules exhibited 27 distinct vibrational modes. The data used for this breakthrough was originally collected in 2019 for different research objectives, with the discovery realized through collaboration with theoretical physicists at the Center for Free-Electron Laser Science in Hamburg, who developed novel analytical methods.