The space between two close surfaces is not emptiness, but a seething quantum glue. Within it, quantum fluctuations are continuously born and die — microscopic bursts of energy that create attractive or repulsive forces. This Casimir effect is now used to make objects levitate without support.

Researchers placed a polystyrene plate over Teflon and filled the gap with a magnetic fluid containing nanoparticles. By changing the magnetic field, they controlled how the fluid interacts with light, which directly affected the quantum pressure. The plate hovered, held only by the field. This trick works even at room temperature, although thermal jittering of particles tries to spoil everything. Scientists calculated the limit where heat prevails and overcame it. The most surprising thing: the finer the material tuning, the higher the levitation — the plate rose to tenths of a millimeter, which at these scales is comparable to a flight of several meters.