Magnetic monopoles detected in a real magnet for the first time
September 3, 2009
This is an impression of a "spin spaghetti" of Dirac strings. Credit: HZB / D.J.P. Morris & A. Tennant
Researchers from the Helmholtz Centre Berlin, in cooperation with colleagues from Dresden, St. Andrews, La Plata and Oxford, have for the first time observed magnetic monopoles and how they emerge in a real material. They publish this result in the journal Science within the Science Express web site on Sept. 3.
Magnetic monopoles are hypothetical particles proposed by physicists that carry a single magnetic pole, either a magnetic North pole or South pole. In the material world this is quite exceptional because magnetic particles are usually observed as dipoles, north and south combined. However there are several theories that predict the existence of monopoles. Among others, in 1931 the physicist Paul Dirac was led by his calculations to the conclusion that magnetic monopoles can exist at the end of tubes - called Dirac strings - that carry magnetic field. Until now they have remained undetected.
This is a schematic diagram of the neutron scattering experiment: Neutrons are fired towards the sample, and when a magnetic field is applied the Dirac strings align against the field with magnetic monopoles at their ends. The neutrons scatter from the strings providing data which show us the strings properties. Credit: HZB / D.J.P. Morris & A. Tennant
Jonathan Morris, Alan Tennant and colleagues (HZB) undertook a neutron scattering experiment at the Berlin research reactor. The material under investigation was a single crystal of Dysprosium Titanate. This material crystallises in a quite remarkable geometry, the so called pyrochlore-lattice. With the help of neutron scattering Morris and Tennant show that the magnetic moments inside the material had reorganised into so-called „Spin-Spaghetti". This name comes from the ordering of the dipoles themselves, such that a network of contorted tubes (Strings) develops, through which magnetic flux is transported. These can be made visible by their interaction with the neutrons which themselves carry a magnetic moment. Thus the neutrons scatter as a reciprocal representation of the Strings.During the neutron scattering measurements a magnetic field was applied to the crystal by the researchers. With this field they could influence the symmetry and orientation of the strings. Thereby it was possible to reduce the density of the string networks and promote the monopole dissociation. As a result, at temperatures from 0.6 to 2 Kelvin, the strings are visible and have magnetic monopoles at their ends.
Pictured are Bastian Klemke and Jonathan Morris at instrument E2 of the Research-Reactor at HZB in Berlin (Flat-Cone Single Crystal Diffractometer). Credit: HZB / A. Rouvičre
The signature of a gas made up by these monopoles has also been observed in heat capacity measured by Bastian Klemke (HZB). Providing further confirmation of the existence of monopoles and showing that they interact in the same way as electric charges.In this work the researchers, for the first time, attest that monopoles exist as emergent states of matter, i.e. they emerge from special arrangements of dipoles and are completely different from the constituents of the material. However, alongside this fundamental knowledge, Jonathan Morris explains the further meaning of the results: „We are writing about new, fundamental properties of matter. These properties are generally valid for materials with the same topology, that is for magnetic moments on the pyrochlore lattice. For the development of new technologies this can have big implications. Above all it signifies the first time fractionalisation in three dimensions is observed."
More information:
• Article in Science Express 3-Sep-2009: "Dirac Strings and Magnetic Monopoles in Spin Ice Dy2Ti2O7" DOI: 10.1126/science.1178868; D.J.P. Morris, D.A. Tennant, S.A. Grigera, B. Klemke, C. Castelnovo, R. Moessner, C. Czter-nasty, M. Meissner, K.C. Rule, J.-U. Hoffmann, K. Kiefer, S. Gerischer, D. Slobinsky, and R.S. Perry
• Castelnovo, C. et al.: Magnetic monopoles in spin ice. In: Nature 451, 42-45, 2008.
Source: Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres (news : web)
2 hours ago
If this is accurate and true, this is huge. Actually existing monopoles is something that's been predicted for a long time but never seen, and I certainly never believed they could really exist. The possible technological impact of monopoles is profound. My only concern here is that they say "monopoles exist as emergent states of matter," rather than as a particle (like an electric monopole, the electron). This might mean it would be very hard to utilize these things in useful ways. But this is all infant research so here's hoping for the best. Keep up the good work, very exciting times ahead!
I agree. Wow, this is big. Real magnetic monopoles could have so many applications. Science is exciting.
http://pesn.com/2...onopole/
Seriously, what do we do with them?
Did that article even say anything at all? All he talks about are death threats, scary white helicopters, and how the government is murderous and evil. Ridiculous. Also, he claims that "Today and for the last 10 years, I have been nearly unable to even think let alone function in any capacity well enough to hold down a full time job." Really? Then how did he write the article? If he's capable of coming up with sentences like that, surely he could get a job with a data entry company or something.
He only makes two mentions of actual uses that I could find - torque and "invisibility". Torque is plausible - if you used monopoles in an electric motor it would be far stronger than with dipoles. Invisibility though? I can see the connection since light is an EM wave, but monopoles would have to be insanely powerful to bend it.
The first two uses that came to my mind were incredibly efficient electric motors (more torque, as mentioned, and no resistance to turning besides friction) and transportation (like better maglev systems and not just for trains, for similar reasons as the motor).
A better article I found was http://www.frc.ri...npol.mss
As with everything else you'll find it's all speculation of course, but at least it's not full of "the government is trying to kill me" nonsense.
If I understand correctly, it's a synthetic quasiparticle, it appears in special materials under specific circumstances. I don't think it has any major implications, as an actual monopole would. Might be useful for research, since Dysprosium Titanate doesn't sound like it grows on trees.
Hmm...Wikipedia seems to back my assumptions up, so settle down Internet folk, we're not quite there yet.
"In this work the researchers, for the first time, attest that monopoles exist as emergent states of matter, i.e. they emerge from special arrangements of dipoles and are completely different from the constituents of the material."
If these monopoles arise from a "secial arrangement of dipoles" how are they different from a regular magnet with two poles, other than being in some contorted twisted state? Their diagram shows this also, not with single monopoles but with two poles "connected" just like a regular magnet.
Yeah I know, I think that would have been obvious to anybody, it was a joke... That's why I said 'Seriously...' after it. I thought the article was FUNNY. Oy. I wonder just how dense some of you idiot savants really are. Except you Noummunn. You're a metaphysical phemenon. Phomenum. Pheminonen.
As usual you argue without knowing what your arguing about. Kant's point was to show metaphysics CANNOT be a source of knowledge,.. but eh why let facts get in the way of your continued silly insults.
G. Lochak "The equation of a Light Leptonic Magnetic Monopole and its Experimental Aspects." Zeitshrift fur Naturforschung A, 62a, 231-246, 2007.
http://arxiv.org/...1.2752v1
What facts? I would like to see some. All I see in this article is simple twisted intertwined bar magnets and confusing talk. Not a single magnetic monopole.
Agree, What they describe looks no different than a string made of tiny aligned magnets, with two poles at each extremity.
This is not an elementary magnetic monopole like the one theorized by Lochak and observed by Urutskoiev (see arxiv paper above).
This modelling fault, concerning both the questions of elementarity/fundamentality and internal fractal substructure, is a question of ontological focus - nothing is totally autonomous and independent - a question that was already solved, believe it or not, in the metaphysical reality modelling in the understanding of Interdependent Origination foundational to Buddhism and as quantified, e.g. in the Twelve Nidhanas. In quantum physics this focus too often becomes radically scientistic and gets hooked on its own paradigmatic anchors, to whit, take the electron. It is still comfortably taught by modern electrodynamicists that the electron is a "point-source" of energy and surrounded by dipolarly contrasting "virtual positive charges" and acts as a source of energy all BY ITSELF. In actuality, nothing in the universe is a source of energy all by itself, a tautological impossibility and the very essence of a perpetuum mobile - all sources are transductive, in the conversion of one energy-form to another. Whitaker's 1903/04 analysis of Maxwellian electromagnetics proves conclusively that the dipolar field breaks down into two phase-conjugate longitudinal wave-pairs where the electron acts as a gateway between 4-D Minkowskian spacetime and 3-D physical expression - it converts a reverse flow in time into real EM energy in physical space. Learn more from T. Bearden's seminal paper, "Giant Negentropy from the Common Dipole," prove it by performing the Bohren Experiment with COP>18, do some background research on the multiply performed verifications of these experiments, understand Lorent'z trick of symmetrical regauging to get rid of the Heaviside Dark component in EM energy induction and the faulty modelling in regarding the Poynting component as allegedly being the only "real" EM-energy flow in all presently designed electrical circuits, learn how Morgan destroyed Tesla's "Free Energy" concept and the reality of this in the corrected Maxwellian Electrodynamics and its scientific and social implications, understand then how this is tenaciously hunted down, ridiculed and excommunicated by paradigmatically entrenched academic, governmental and corporate agencies that have existing infrastructure of trillions invested in the insane overutilisation of nuclear and fossil fuels and you'll begin to see how we have been misled and lied to for just about a hundred years...
Noumenon is referring to "facts" that he/she's always presenting from Philosophy, or some other region of "science". I'm honestly not sure if he/she has ever referred to any commonly accepted ideas. Some people don't quite understand that while science doesn't know everything, it's A LOT farther along than some random person saying something (that although makes sense, has no evidence to back it up). Sorry a bit of a tangent there. But if I see someone link to "Aether Waves" one more time, I might just lose it.
=)
I don't reject "commonly accepted ideas".
G. Lochak "The equation of a Light Leptonic Magnetic Monopole and its Experimental Aspects." Zeitshrift fur Naturforschung A, 62a, 231-246, 2007.
http://arxiv.org/...1.2752v1
Only meant for entertainment value. Ad Noumenim. I thought we were bonding? I actually bought another Spinoza book the other day.
@Adriab
After a week or so I still see no current thinking here on what freaking good are monopoles anyway. You made the statement- what are applications? You still out there or just hit-and-run?
What difference does it make if the magnetic field lines are transported internally or even outside, beyond the range of the neutron detectors.
You still have string magnets with two poles. If you cut the string magnets in half you will still end up with two magnets with two poles or a total of 4 poles just like any ordinary magnet. Just because you cannot detect the returning field lines is not proof they do not exist.
Let's see them create a single monopole that is attracted to only one pole of an ordinary magnet.
How about we call those tubes electric currents......
Felix Ehrenhaft observed monopoles years ago.
http://leedskalni...ests.pdf
There will be zero net magnetization. The magnetic field from one half of the sphere will be exactly cancelled by that of the other half. There will be no net current around a circumference to produce a magnetic field. (Naive and classical, but if an axe does the job, why use a scalpel?)
To visualize this situation draw a line around the edges of a piece of paper, now mark it with arrowheads all pointing head-to-butt to emulate our current. If you fold this piece of paper over so two opposite edges touch each other, you will notice the arrows point in opposite directions "cancelling" each other.
Hope I'm making any sense, this was very head-to-keyb-newThought-oard.