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Posts with tag: speed-of-light | Return to ScienceNewsBlog.com Homepage
German Physicists Claim to Have Broken Speed of Light
Telegraph.co.uk reports that two German physicists, Dr Gunter Nimtz and Dr Alfons Stahlhofen ((University of Koblenz), claim to have broken the speed of light by moving two microwave photons "instantaneously" between two prisms placed 3 feet apart.
The pair say they have conducted an experiment in which microwave photons - energetic packets of light - travelled "instantaneously" between a pair of prisms that had been moved up to 3ft apart.
Being able to travel faster than the speed of light would lead to a wide variety of bizarre consequences.
For instance, an astronaut moving faster than it would theoretically arrive at a destination before leaving.
The scientists were investigating a phenomenon called quantum tunnelling, which allows sub-atomic particles to break apparently unbreakable laws.
ZD Net reports that a Dr. Kevin McIsaac says the potential breakthrough should be treated with skepticism until the experiment can be repeated by other scientists. Gizmodo says time to form a queue for time travel. The breakthrough - if verified- may not help with time travel but it could certainly pave the way for a superfast internet.
Posted on August 16, 2007
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