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1.媒体来源:
外媒 sciencealert
2.记者署名:
Mike McRae
3.完整新闻标题:
Physicists Catch Light in 'Imaginary Time' in Scientific First
学界首次捕捉到[虚数时间]中的[光]
4.完整新闻内文:
Physicists Catch Light in 'Imaginary Time' in Scientific First
Physics
30 June 2025
ByMike McRae
abstract light
(agsandrew/Getty Images Pro/Canva)
For the first time, researchers have seen how light behaves during a
mysterious phenomenon called 'imaginary time'.
When you shine light through almost any transparent material, the gridlock of
electromagnetic fields that make up the atomic alleys and side streets will
add a significant amount of time to each photon's commute.
This delay can tell physicists a lot about how light scatters, revealing
details about the matrix of material the photons must navigate. Yet until
now, one trick up the theorist's sleeve for measuring light's journey –
invoking imaginary time – has not been fully understood in practical terms.
物理学家首次在科学研究中捕捉到“虚时间”中的光
2025年6月30日
由麦克·麦克雷
研究人员首次看到光在被称为“虚时间”的神秘现像中的行为。
当光线穿过几乎任何透明材料时，构成原子小巷和小巷的电磁场拥塞将显著增加每个光子
的通勤时间。
这种延迟可以让物理学家了解光如何散射，揭示光子必须穿越的物质基质的细节。然而，
迄今为止，理论物理学家测量光程的秘诀——引入虚时间——在实践中尚未被充分理解。
An experiment conducted by University of Maryland physicists Isabella
Giovannelli and Steven Anlage has now revealed precisely what pulses of
microwave radiation (a type of light that exists outside the visible
spectrum) do while experiencing imaginary time inside a roundabout of cables.
Their work also demonstrates how imaginary numbers can describe a very real
and measurable process.
由马里兰大学物理学家伊莎贝拉·乔瓦内利和史蒂文·安拉奇进行的一项实验现已准确揭
示了微波辐射脉冲（一种存在于可见光谱之外的光）在电缆环形结构内经历虚时间时的行
为。
他们的工作也证明了虚数如何描述非常真实且可测量的过程。
Gamma rays, X-rays, ultraviolet, visible, infrared, microwaves, and radio
waves are all forms of light that make up the electromagnetic spectrum, each
defined by its wavelength. (NASA, ESA, CSA, Leah Hustak (STScI)/Public Domain)
伽马射线、X 射线、紫外线、可见光、红外线、微波和无线电波都是构成电磁波谱的光的
形式，每种形式都由其波长定义。 （NASA、ESA、CSA、Leah Hustak (STScI)/公共领域
）
Imaginary numbers are mathematically convenient tools for solving equations
that describe physical phenomena. Handy as they are, they're as abstract as
the square root of a negative number, having no practical equivalence in our
everyday experience of reality.
For pulses of light waves dilly-dallying through a chunk of matter, imaginary
numbers have helped solve transmission time delays, but the exact behaviors
responsible for their role have never been systematically examined in
experiments.
Technically, single photons of light can only ever move at a single, constant
speed. Yet interactions with surrounding electromagnetic fields can delay a
wave's overall journey in complex ways. In the context of light pulses, the
actions of collections of waves can be sped up and slowed down in a similar
manner.
虚数是数学上用来解描述物理现象方程式的便利工具。虽然虚数很方便，但它们却像负数
的平方根一样抽象，在我们日常的现实经验中没有实际的对应。
对于在物质块中缓慢传输的光波脉冲，虚数有助于解决传输时间延迟问题，但其具体行为
从未在实验中得到系统检验。
从技术角度来看，单一光子只能以单一的恒定速度传播。然而，与周围电磁场的相互作用
会以复杂的方式延迟波的整体传播路径。在光脉冲的背景下，波的集合体的移动可以以类
似的方式加速或减慢。
This means a pulse of light waves can be negative, technically moving faster
than its individual photons. Positive and negative values – both real and
imaginary – can paint a picture of the photonic traffic conditions making up
a material.
The experiment's apparatus consisted of a pair of coaxial cables connected in
a circle, representing a simple and well-understood network of pathways for
pulses of microwave light to travel through. They also made use of
cutting-edge oscilloscopes that could detect incredibly small shifts in
frequency.
这意味着光波脉冲可以是负的，严格来说，其运动速度比单一光子的速度更快。正值和负
值——无论是实数还是虚数——都可以描绘出构成某种物质的光子流动状况。
实验装置由一对连接成环形的同轴电缆组成，代表着一个简单且易于理解的微波脉冲传播
路径网络。他们还使用了能够探测到极度微小的频率变化的尖端示波器。
https://ibb.co/YSJBgfM
Coaxial cables connected as a 'ring graph' serve as a material for microwaves
to pass through. (Giovannelli, Phys. Rev. Lett., 2025)
以“环状图”连接的同轴电缆充当微波的传输介质。 （Giovannelli，《物理评论快报》
，2025年）
By tinkering with the pulses and measuring the effects, Giovannelli and
Anlage could untangle exactly how the patterns of waves within each pulse
change with respect to values predicted by real and imaginary components of
their equations.
"It's sort of like a hidden degree of freedom that people ignored," Anlage
explained to Karmela Padavic-Callaghan at New Scientist.
"I think what we've done is bring it out and give it a physical meaning."
透过调整脉冲并测量其效果，Giovannelli 和 Anlage 可以准确地解开每个脉冲内的波形
如何根据其方程式的实部和虚部预测的值而变化。
“这有点像人们忽略的一种隐藏的自由度，”安拉格向《新科学家》杂志的卡梅拉·帕达
维奇·卡拉汉解释道。
“我认为我们所做的就是将其展现出来并赋予其物理意义。”
The imaginary numbers weren't describing some bizarre microwave daydream, but
rather a tiny shift in the carrier wave's frequency as it passes through a
material thanks to the way the transmitted pulse was absorbed.
Where previously this figure was ignored as, well, imaginary, it can now be
connected to the physical operations that allow pulses of light waves to move
quicker than the very photons they're composed of.
Just imagine.
This research has been accepted for publication by Physical Review Letters.
这些虚数并不是描述某种奇怪的微波白日梦，而是由于发射脉冲被吸收的方式，载波频率
在穿过材料时发生的微小变化。
以前，这个数字被当作假想的而忽略，而现在它可以与物理操作联系起来，使得光波脉冲
的移动速度比组成它们的光子更快。
想像一下。
该研究已被《物理评论快报》接受发表。
5.完整新闻连结 (或短网址)不可用YAHOO、LINE、MSN等转载媒体:
https://reurl.cc/2Kxmo4
6.备注:
安德森时空引擎有谱了
https://youtu.be/KEOwxXo8gk4?si=vwJv1V9TaoHH6Gw5&t=740
https://ibb.co/1JvccPXX