Scientists from ITMO University have proven for the first time that "twisted" electrons — particles that create not just rotation, but a quantum whirlpool — can be accelerated to speeds close to the speed of light without losing their unique properties. This opens the way to new experiments in microscopy and high-energy physics, according to the Russian Science Foundation.
Previously, such particles were only used in electron microscopes to study magnetic materials. Accelerating them in accelerators was not possible: they lost their "twist." ITMO physicists have proposed a mathematical model that explains how to avoid this.
The researchers considered two main risks. The first is the loss of energy through the emission of photons. It turned out that the "twist" hardly disappears along with the energy. The second is the influence of the particle's magnetic moment (a tiny "compass needle") on its movement. Here, calculations showed that twisted electrons start to "fail" at energies 147 times lower than ordinary ones.
To circumvent this problem, the authors propose two solutions: use linear accelerators instead of ring accelerators, or use "Siberian snakes" — devices developed at the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics SB RAS that periodically correct the magnetic moment of the particle.
Our calculations allowed us to analyze in detail various mechanisms of twist loss and propose methods for its preservation with a significant increase in particle energy. In the future, we will have to verify the correctness of the conclusions drawn in experiments on accelerators.
Read more related materials:
- Breakthrough in nuclear physics: JINR scientists for the first time made ions collide in two directions at the NICA collider
- Studying "new physics": a neutrino observatory is planned to be created in the Chelyabinsk region
- A new development by Russian physicists will improve the safety of thermonuclear reactors