Quantum Entanglement: "Spooky Action at a Distance"

The famous image of Einstein taken by United Press photographer Arthur Sasse in 1951!

On an April afternoon in 2019, my dad picked me up from school to take me out to Jimmy John's for lunch. He was eager to share some exciting news with me: the first photo of a black hole has been revealed. I remember seeing this all over the news and having so many questions. How long had they been trying this for? how were they able to track a black hole? what kind of camera did they use?! My dad, engineer and physics enthusiast, had most of the answers. Our conversation took us everywhere and somehow we ended up talking about quantum physics and, more specifically, quantum entanglement.

I always attribute that conversation as the catalyst for my yearning in pursuing a physics degree. I remember feeling an intense emotion of 'everyone in the world needs to know about this amazing, complex phenomenon right now' and wanting to learn everything about it then. That same day, I bought a book on the subject, watched several videos, read articles, and essentially just did my own research on it. It was the most exciting subject I ever studied, and I told myself I HAD to share it with anyone that would lend a listening ear. But now I get to write about it! and I felt it was super fitting for October since Einstein himself coined this phenomenon, "Spooky Action at Distance"

 

photograph of a supermassive black hole at the center of M87,
 a galaxy 54 million lightyears away by the Event Horizon Telescope

What is Quantum Physics?

I really like Steven Holzner's definition of quantum physics. He wrote, "Physics as a general discipline has no limits, from the very huge (galaxy-wide) to the very small (atoms and smaller). This is about the very small side of things - that's the specialty of quantum physics. When you quantize something, you can't go any smaller; you're dealing with discrete units"

Quantum physics is the study of matter and energy at the most fundamental level. We are studying things that are very, very small, and we use this to help explain and better understand how everything essentially works. Quantum physics also has various applications in our everyday life. Our computers, clocks, lasers, and so much more would not be able to operate without it. Within this field, numerous 'spooky' events occur, but I've definitely picked out my favorite one ;)

Quantum Entanglement

Quantum entanglement is truly a weird phenomenon. It explains that two subatomic particles can be intrinsically bounded or, entangled, no matter how far apart they are. These particles could be separated by billions of lightyears in space but they would still somehow be linked to each other. During the mid 1930's, Einstein asserted that this phenomenon was too 'spooky' to be real and therefore must be incomplete. I mean, it literally makes no sense, and that's the thing about quantum physics: it defies all beliefs of 'common sense'. I find this to be the most exciting part about physics.

This illustration shows the connectedness of two entangled particles
(Credit: ezstudiophoto/ Adobe Stock)

"Though scientists still debate how the seemingly bizarre phenomenon of entanglement arises, they know it is a real principle that passes test after test."

 - Caltech Science Exchange

This phenomenon has been proven to be very real. It has been researched by scientists for decades and will one day (hopefully) be studied by me :) We are still learning about this everyday! Just last year Alain Aspect, John Clauser and Anton Zeilinger all won the Nobel prize in physics for their research in quantum phenomena. 

What's really strange about this occurrence in particular is that these entangled particles are no longer able to be described independently; they are now one (this caused for lots of poems to be written by me about a metaphorically toxic relationship HAHA). To clarify, there are still two particles. But once you describe one of them, you've described the other. These particles have assumed their superposition, which is their ability to be in multiple states at once. To illustrate, particles often have a trait called spin that can only be defined as up or down. However, up until you measure which way the particle is spinning, they exist as both spin up and spin down, i.e. superposition. If you're familiar with Schrödinger's cat this should sound very similar 👀

Additionally, what this means is that if you were to manipulate one particle, you would instantaneously be manipulating the other. So if you and I were each holding a particle, and you were in space and I on earth, and I were to spin mine, yours would immediately begin spinning as well. Is that not spooky?!

Why is This Important and What Does it Mean?

Quantum entanglement opens up a whole realm of possibilities for our future and science. It allows us to experiment with more advanced ways of processing information through applications such as quantum computing. I've even read arguments that entanglement helps prove the fact we are living in a simulation - beware of this- I went through a horrible existential crisis for a few weeks after reading too much into this. There's also been arguments that this process of communication through particles in entanglement is faster than the speed of light, but this is a misconception and has proven to not be true. 

Either way, we can all agree that entanglement and quantum physics as a whole is an immense breakthrough for our world. We will continue doing research in this field to help us better understand our universe and why it behaves the way it does. I cannot wait to see what our generation will discover and what research I will take part in in the years to come. 

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Here are some additional resources if you want to learn some more!

➢Neil DeGrasse Tyson Explores Quantum Entanglement with Janna Levin - StarTalk (YT video)

➢Why Did Quantum Entanglement Win the Nobel Prize in Physics? - PBS Space Time (YT video)

➢Quantum Entanglement and Information- Stanford Encyclopedia and of Philosophy

➢Six Things Everyone Should Know About Quantum Physics- Forbes

➢DOE Explains...Quantum Mechanics- Department of Energy 

 

Thanks for reading! <3