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In quantum mechanics, the whole can be much greater than the sum of its parts, according to new calculations. They suggest that several low-energy quantum states could be combined into a state containing regions that are dozens of times more energetic than any of the constituent components. The research may ultimately have real-world applications, such as in producing better high-resolution microscopes.

One of the more shocking revelations of quantum mechanics is that every object can be viewed as a wave if the circumstances are just right 鈥� and the mathematics of what it means to be a wave hides many oddities. at Chapman University in California and his colleagues have now uncovered a new way to leverage some of those oddities to make quantum states that should have very little energy but actually pack a lot.

Their idea builds on the work of , also at Chapman University, who co-authored the new study. In the 1990s, Aharonov and his colleagues discovered a phenomenon called 鈥渟uperoscillations鈥�. Any wave, from a vibrating guitar string to a wave of light, can be decomposed into several constituent sinusoidal waves, each of which wiggles with some frequency. Aharonov and his colleagues found that if they effectively zoomed in on only one small region of the main wave, on rare occasions the sum of its constituent waves would add up to wiggle much faster than the main wave鈥檚 fastest part 鈥� forming a superoscillation.

This may not seem surprising, but Jordan says that in practice, it can have unexpected consequences. For instance, it means that you should be able to take a wave of red light, which has a relatively low frequency, and find a region of it that vibrates at a higher frequency, making it look blue instead 鈥� a phenomenon that was eventually . Now, Jordan has expanded the idea to other quantum 鈥渟uper behaviours鈥� by taking advantage of the wave nature of quantum objects.

In the new study, he and his colleagues mathematically proved that in the same way the components of a simple wave can add up to one unexpectedly fast-wiggling region, several quantum states with near-zero energies can combine into a state that has one very energetic region. He says the idea is very general and the new paper provides a recipe for how to apply it to 鈥測our favourite quantum [property]鈥�.

Quantum 鈥榓rrow of time鈥� suggests early universe had no entanglement

One way to explain why time only moves forward is the quantum arrow of time, and it has major implications for both the universe's early period and its eventual demise

This 鈥渟uperenergy鈥� phenomenon could be tested experimentally and may find uses in light-based experiments and in the development of new forms of light-based imaging devices. The caveat, however, is that it would crop up fairly rarely and so researchers would have to repeat an experiment many times in order to observe it.

at the University of Bristol in the UK, who was involved in early superoscillation studies, says the calculations all come down to 鈥渙rthodox quantum mechanics, unconventionally applied鈥� to make predictions about quantum properties that are beyond the ranges of those conventionally thought possible. He says there are many related unusual phenomena in the quantum realm, including the way a series of waves travelling forwards can be combined into a wave that in some regions travels backwards.

Jordan is interested in uncovering even more of these unusual phenomena, and he is already collaborating with experimental physicists who may be able to prove their existence in the lab.