Two states of matter they didn’t teach you about in school… Until Now!

Bose-Einstein Condensate Plasma Bose-Einstein Condensate

We all know about: SOLIDS LIQUIDS GASES Lower Temperature Higher Temperature

Will everything just be a gas? But what happens if you raise the temperature to super-high levels… between 1000°C and 1,000,000,000°C ? Will everything just be a gas?

PLASMA NO! The 4th state of matter: If the gas is made up of particles which carry an electric charge (“ionized particles”), but the entire gas as a whole has no electric charge, and if the density is not too high, then we can get The 4th state of matter: PLASMA

Some places where plasmas are found… 1. Flames

2. Lightning

3. Aurora (Northern Lights)

3. Aurora (Northern Lights) 4. Aurora (from above)

5. Neon lights

6. Stars Stars make up 99% of the total VISIBLE matter in the Universe. Therefore, 99% of everything VISIBLE that exists in the entire Universe is in the plasma state.

The Sun is an example of a star in its plasma state

We can generate stars here on Earth via a Tokamak reactor We can generate stars here on Earth via a Tokamak reactor. They are donut shaped but stars nonetheless.

7. Plasma cutting

8. Clouds of gas and dust around stars 6

So now we know all about four states of matter: PLASMAS (only for low density ionized gases) LIQUIDS GASES SOLIDS Lower Temperature Higher Temperature

Will everything just be a frozen solid? But now what happens if you lower the temperature way, way, down to 100 nano degrees above “Absolute Zero” (-273°C) Will everything just be a frozen solid?

Not Necessarily! In 1924 (82 years ago), two scientists, Albert Einstein and Satyendra Bose predicted a 5th state of matter which would occur at very very low temperatures. Einstein Bose +

Ketterle and his students Finally, in 1995 (only 14 years ago!), Wolfgang Ketterle and his team of graduate students discovered the 5th state of matter for the first time. Ketterle and his students The 5th state of matter: Bose-Einstein Condensate

In a Bose-Einstein condensate, atoms can no longer bounce around as individuals. Instead they must all act in exactly the same way, and you can no longer tell them apart!

Bose-Einstein Condensation Here is a picture a computer took of Bose-Einstein Condensation The big peak happens when all the atoms act exactly the same way! (We can’t see Bose-Einstein condensation with our eyes because the atoms are too small)

Some other computer images of Bose-Einstein Condensates…

To really understand Bose-Einstein condensate you need to know Quantum Physics

In 2002, Ketterle and two other scientists received the highest award in science for discovering Bose-Einstein condensate: The Nobel Prize

The five states of matter: PLASMA (only for low density ionized gases) BOSE-EINSTEIN CONDENSATE LIQUIDS SOLIDS GASES Lower Temperature Higher Temperature

There might be sixth type …and a lot of it Dark Matter Dark Matter is matter that we cannot see. It neither emits nor reflects any light. If we can’t see it. Scientists can measure dark matter indirectly by observing its gravitational effects in a variety of ways.