Scientists discover atoms suddenly spinning backward in quantum experiment
Scientists have observed a unique quantum effect where atomic rotations in a crystal can suddenly reverse direction. This discovery was made using powerful terahertz laser pulses, allowing researchers to track angular momentum movement for the first time. The findings could enhance understanding of magnetism and the control of advanced quantum materials.
- ▪Researchers used terahertz laser pulses to trigger atomic rotations in a crystal.
- ▪The direction of rotation can unexpectedly flip as momentum is transferred.
- ▪The study provides new insights into the fundamental origins of magnetism.
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| Original publisher | ScienceDaily |
| Canonical URL | https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/05/260523103903.htm |
| Publication time | Sun, 24 May 2026 06:21:18 EDT |
| Retrieval time | 2026-05-24T10:22:32.368Z |
| Last seen | 2026-05-24T10:22:32.368Z |
| Headline source | Publisher (no WeSearch rewrite) |
| Excerpt source | publisher body |
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| Summary | WeSearch · cerebras-chat (WeSearch summarizer) |
| Summary source text | contentText |
| Citation coverage | Summary is a WeSearch-generated derivative; primary citation is the original publisher URL. |
| Cluster | _Y9DJX_NnKi4 |
| Cluster logic | Grouped by semantic title/content similarity across sources within a rolling window. Same-publisher template collisions are excluded from coverage comparison. |
| Ranking reason | Story pages are not engagement-ranked. Hub feeds use recency, with optional source-diversified chronological ordering (cap consecutive stories per source). No personalized ranking. |
| Publisher visit | Yes — open original |
| Substitutes article? | No — link-out required for full text |
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| Retrieval / RAG | May the content be exposed for third-party retrieval-augmented generation? | Not asserted |
| Model training | May the content be used to train AI models? | Not asserted |
| Commercial reuse | May the content be reused commercially? | Not permitted |
Basis: Derived from the published RSS/Atom feed. Contact: [email protected]. Reviewed: 2026-07-24.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Science News from research organizations Scientists discover atoms suddenly spinning backward in quantum experiment Scientists used powerful laser pulses to uncover a bizarre quantum effect where atomic rotations inside a crystal suddenly reverse direction. Date: May 24, 2026 Source: Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf Summary: Scientists have directly watched angular momentum move through a crystal for the very first time — and discovered a bizarre twist along the way. Using ultra-powerful terahertz laser pulses, researchers triggered tiny atomic rotations inside a quantum material and found that the direction of rotation can unexpectedly flip as momentum is transferred.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at ScienceDaily.
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