Researchers at the University of Maryland in the U.S. have experimentally validated the existence of imaginary time, a concept previously considered purely mathematical.
Their findings, published in Physical Review Letters, open up new possibilities for science and technology. This discovery could significantly impact the development of data storage and computing, making them more efficient.
Furthermore, it aids in understanding the information scrambling processes that occur when light passes through different materials. Imaginary time helps to address gravitational singularities, which simplifies complex problems in physics.
In quantum mechanics, imaginary time is derived from real time through the Wick rotation. It is used in quantum mechanics and statistical physics. At a finite temperature, the Green's function becomes periodic in imaginary time with a period of 2β = 2/T.
The Fourier transformation then contains only a discrete set of frequencies, known as Matsubara frequencies. In cosmology, imaginary time helps to smooth out gravitational singularities, which prevents the usual laws of our space from being fulfilled.
However, using imaginary time can avoid these singularities, opening up new horizons for technology and fundamental science.