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The quantum mirage was first experimentally observed by Hari Manoharan, Christopher Lutz and Donald Eigler at the IBM Almaden Research Center in San Jose, California in 2000. The effect is quite remarkable but in general agreement with prior work on the quantum mechanics of dynamical billiards in elliptical arenas. QUANTUM CORRAL The mirage occurs at the foci of a quantum corral, an Ellipitical ring of Cobalt atoms on a Copper surface. The quantum corral was demonstrated in 1993 by Lutz, Eigler, and Michael Crommie, now a professor at the University of California. The Ferromagnetic cobalt atoms reflect the surface electrons of the copper inside the ring into a wave pattern predicted by quantum mechanics. The size and shape of the corral determine its quantum states, including the energy and distribution of the electrons. To make conditions suitable for the mirage the team at Almaden chose a configuration of the corral which concentrated the electrons at the foci of the ellipse. When scientists placed a magnetic cobalt atom at one focus of the corral, a mirage of the atom appeared at the other focus. Specifically the same electronic properties were present in the electrons surrounding both foci, even though the cobalt atom was only present at one focus. APPLICATIONS IBM Scientists are hoping to use quantum mirages to construct atomic scale processors in the future. REFERENCES
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