Quantum tunneling

This technology could guarantee the exchange of data in a 100% secure way, without the risk of being intercepted by hackers.

A clever new study definitively measures how long it takes for quantum particles to pass through a barrier.

Isaac Newton established that light is a particle. Many years later, James Clerk Maxwell made a theory that would disprove Newton--the theory of electromagnetism, which we still use today. In this theory, light is a wave. However, another great physicist came along and altered the theory again, once more asserting that light is a particle. This physicist […]

Quantum tunnelling and uncertainty principles

Things get weird at the quantum level and now we know they can happen really fast when a particle pushes through an almost insurmountable barrier.

A particle is trapped inside a black hole. What is the probability it will escape via quantum tunneling? To figure this out, we begin by defining the variables involved: The diagram below shows two regions: I and O. Region I is inside the event horizon, within the Schwarzshild radius (rs). Region O is outside the event horizon. The question we ask is what is the probability the particle (red dot) will reach region O? And, we could also ask what is the probability the particle will fail to…

Tunneling reactions in chemistry are difficult to predict. The quantum mechanically exact description of chemical reactions with more than three particles is difficult, with more than four particles it is almost impossible. Theorists simulate these reactions with classical physics and must neglect quantum effects. But where is the limit of this classical description of chemical reactions, which can only provide approximations?

Potentially harmful changes in genetic code may be caused by subatomic particles ‘tunnelling’ across the DNA helix