The award was awarded to researcher Dr. Shlomi Kotler from the Hebrew University by the British Association of Physicists for his research on quantum entanglement
Dr. Shlomi Kotler from the Department of Applied Physics at the Hebrew University won the "Scientific Discovery of the Year in Physics" award of the British Association of Physicists.
It is possible to learn a little about the class, based on the discoveries that were praised in the previous years: the discovery of the Higgs Boson particle, whose existence for years was only a hypothesis, gravitational waves, the first discovery of a cosmic neuron with high energy and the landing of a probe on a comet. The jury consists of the five editors of the journal Physics World, who selected breakthrough discoveries from among the hundreds of works published in 2021. The selection criteria are a significant advance in knowledge or understanding, the importance of the work for basic science or technological development, and being of interest to all of the journal's readers.
The commendation was given for the research work published this year in the scientific journal Science, carried out by Dr. Shlomi Kotler, from the Department of Applied Physics at the Hebrew University, at the (American) National Institute of Standards and Technology, together with the Advanced Microwave Photonics Research Group led by John Topol and the Theory of Computation and Communication Group led by Emmanuel Kenil and Scott Glancy. The researchers were able to directly observe the entangled quantum state of Two mechanical drums, Each is about the size of a human hair.
Quantum entanglement is one of the most fascinating phenomena of quantum mechanics. If this phenomenon occurs, two bodies separate from each other can express a strong correlation even without exchanging information between them. When used correctly, entanglement can be useful for innovative communication protocols, for the production of verified random numbers, and eventually, for what everyone wishes for - the creation of a quantum computer. The judges determined that the researchers overcame complex scientific challenges and the work is an important milestone towards the construction of a quantum processor embedded with mechanical objects as memory cells.
According to Dr. Kotler: "I am happy and very excited about winning the honorary title. You have to understand - the road in our research is very long and is based on quite a few risks. If we do all the things right, there is a chance to see a macroscopic scene directly. There was a night when we ran the last experiment in the series and I personally prayed that the next morning we would see a scene. If the result was negative, all the work that lasted 4 years, would have amounted to failure. Thanks to the Hebrew University and the Department of Applied Physics and the Quantum Center for believing in my research over the years. "
Prof. Dan Marom, head of the applied physics department: "This is a breakthrough in expanding the boundaries of the physics of quantum mechanics and adapting it to applications such as communication and long-term quantum memories. The Physics Society has rightly identified this achievement as the scientific breakthrough of 2021.
עAnd on the topic on the science website:
