Physicists found the shortest measurement to collapse a quantum state

Measuring a quantum object makes it lose its odd quantum properties, and it solely takes between 0.1 billionth of a second to 0.1 sextillionth of a second

By Karmela Padavic-Callaghan

The collapse of the quantum wave operate – by which quantum objects go from present inside many potential states directly to settling right into a concrete one understood by classical physics –  doesn’t occur instantaneously, straight difficult a longstanding textbook understanding of quantum physics.

Essentially the most infamous instance of this phenomenon is Erwin Schrödinger’s thought experiment the place a cat in a field is in a quantum state of each “useless” and “alive” on the identical time. Opening the field and taking a look at …