350-year-old theorem could help explain light, research says

According to a new study published in the scientific journal Physical Review Research, a team of researchers Using a mechanics theorem developed 350 years ago Explain the different behavior of light. This is a theorem created to explain how pendulums work, and it contains the proposition that could also explain how the motion of the planets works.

In mid-1673, mathematician, physicist, and engineer Christiaan Huygens wrote a book that talked about a mechanical theorem about pendulums. Based on this theorem, a team of researchers from the Stevens Institute of Technology in the United States was able to explain some mysterious behavior of light.

Huygens explains that light propagates in the form of waves, but he also explains how the energy required to rotate an object depends on the mass of the object and the axis on which it will rotate. The researchers describe applying the theorem to light; the only problem light has no mass, so they used light intensity as a value to calculate mass.

In a post on the Stevens Institute of Technology blog, scientists claim: The study proves for the first time that “the degree of non-quantum entanglement of a light wave is in a direct and complementary relationship with the degree of polarization.”

“This is something that hasn’t been shown before, but it becomes very obvious when you map the properties of light to a mechanical system. What was once abstract becomes concrete: using mechanical equations, we use mechanical equations to calculate the distance between the ‘center of mass’ and other mechanical points to show how the different properties of light relate to each other. you can literally measure it,” said Xiaofeng Qian, assistant professor physicist and study leader at the Stevens Institute of Technology, in an official statement.

Description of light?

As a result of the adaptations, the team was able to visualize light as a mechanical system. can understand some of the more complex behaviors, such as the entanglement and polarization of light waves. One of the questions the researchers sought to answer was whether light is a wave or a particle; it seems to contain a bit of both.

However, researchers could not fully understand whether light is a wave or a particle. they believe there is a connection between the two structures. The connection is at the level of classical physics and also at the level of quantum laws. Either way, scientists will continue to study the issue to further investigate how light works.

“This is still ahead, but with this initial work we have clearly demonstrated that it is possible to understand optical systems in a completely new way by applying mechanical concepts. Ultimately, this research helps simplify the way we understand the world and allows us to recognize fundamental interconnections between seemingly unrelated physical laws.” adds Qian.

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