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Many so-called quasiparticles have been discovered that combine either two different types of matter particles, or light waves bound to a particle of matter. The wave-particle duality, proposed by French physicist Louis de Broglie in 1924, is a powerful concept that describes how every particle or quantum entity can be described as either a particle or a wave. This apparently paradoxical idea that waves have a mass marks the place where quantum physics and the physical world come together. Among physicists, however, it’s a well-known fact.
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But the idea that non-material objects, such as light waves (everything from sunlight to laser radiation), also have a mass is surprising to many. Most people find the concept of momentum and energy (and therefore mass) an easy one to grasp when it’s associated with solid objects. ‘Apple energy’ derived from motion depends on the fruit’s momentum and mass. Apple and wave: they both have a massĪn apple falling from a tree has velocity and mass, which together give it momentum. In time, the team’s findings are likely to impact developments in optical and quantum communication, and precision measurements of frequency, time and distances. Scientists at the University of Bath have found a way to bind together two photons of different colours, paving the way for important advancements in quantum-electrodynamics – the field of science that describes how light and matter interact. Photon-photon polaritons in microresonators