Quantum tunneling: study reveals information scrambling in chemical reactions

In a study recently published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a team of theoretical physicists and chemists from Rice and Illinois Urbana-Champaign universities, both in the US, found used quantum mechanical techniques (wave function and path integrals) to analyze a relatively simple chemical reaction.

The experiment resulted in the quantum information of the particles involved being shuffled at an impressive speed, almost as fast as the most extreme form of information shuffling known in the Universe: singularity of a black hole.

In practice, the researchers worked with an outdated tool to analyze superconductivity that was more than 50 years old. The aim was to combine traditional semi-classical physics (describing the macroscopic world) with the intricacies of quantum effects (describing phenomena in the microscopic world).

The Complexity of the Quantum Tunnel

Main difference between classical mechanics and quantum mechanics in the field of chemical reactions tunneling capacity. In everyday physics, a particle must have an energy equal to or greater than a barrier for the reaction to occur, but in quantum physics there is the possibility of tunneling, i.e. crossing the energy barrier, even with lower energy. .

These quantum “violators” are systems that can lead to unexpected transitions and unpredictable system behavior, making it very difficult to map the evolution of quantum states. This means that even with good knowledge of the initial state of the system, Quantum tunneling can cause chaotic behavior.

To measure the degree of chaos in a quantum system, researchers used OTOCs (temporal out-of-order correlators), a tool for understanding quantum chaos. They do this by correlating features of the system at different moments in time. even if they are not in chronological order.

Practical applications for quantum physics research

Calculations performed with OTOCs in the study showed that chemical reactions with low activation energy at low temperatures, hence regions where tunneling is common, can reach a mixing point where entropy (disorder in a system) and information reach an unexplained paradox. classical world: What happens if information falls into a black hole?

Co-author Nancy Makri looked at what would happen if the simple chemical reaction model was introduced into a larger system, such as large molecular vibrations or a solvent, and tended to suppress chaotic motion. Calculating the OTOC for a tunnel system interacting with the wider environment allowed confusion to be eliminatedsays the research.

The research results can be applied to impose limitations on tunneling systems in creating qubits for quantum computers. In other words, reducing information scrambling is essential in the construction of these devices.

Did you like the content? So stay updated with more topics like this on TecMundo and take the opportunity to understand how cosmochemistry can help us find life beyond Earth.