Quantum Leap to Calm ⚡ экспресс
Sometimes hot water freezes faster than cold — that's the Mpemba effect. Similar behavior has been found in the quantum world: some states reach equilibrium faster. Scientists used machine learning to build a model explaining this 'quantum Mpemba'. Can chaos be predictable?
In the quantum world, the path to calm sometimes resembles a paradoxical race: starting further from the finish, the system reaches equilibrium faster. This effect, a quantum analog of the Mpemba phenomenon, is due to the rapid growth of entropy — a measure of disorder. A strong push at the start seems to trigger an avalanche of changes that accelerates settling.
Scientists built a model based on the principle of maximum entropy growth, tracing back to Ludwig Boltzmann. By compressing the description from four to three dimensions, they achieved agreement with a laboratory three-level system. Machine learning revealed the key parameter governing the decay rate. Thus, a precise formula for the quantum 'shake' emerged.
This is not just theory: qubits will be able to reach the desired state faster after a short excitation. This engineering trick will shorten waiting times in future devices.
🎯 Aristotle described the rapid freezing of heated water, but the effect was named after Tanzanian schoolboy Erasto Mpemba: in 1963, he noticed that hot ice cream freezes faster.