Recently, the Quantum Physics Research Team of the Department of Physics, School of Science, NEU, made significant progress in the field of measuring quantum gravity effects. The research achievements were published in Communications Physics, a Nature Portfolio journal, under the title "Probing minimal observable length with dark modes in an optomechanical detector." Associate Professor Li Wenlin of the Department of Physics at NEU is the first and corresponding author of the paper, and NEU is the first affiliation.
The theory of quantum gravity predicts the existence of a minimal observable limit in space, known as the Planck length. The existence of this limit necessitates modifications to quantum mechanics at the Planck scale, leading to the derivation of the "Generalized Uncertainty Principle" (GUP). Existing measurement schemes typically observe GUP effects by detecting the "inertial vibration" of oscillators, with measurement resolution directly limited by the quality factor of the oscillator. This research proposes a new measurement scheme based on the interference principle: by utilizing constructive mode (bright mode) and destructive mode (dark mode) separately, the measurement principle shifts from detecting "inertial vibration" of oscillators to detecting "sustained forced vibration." Therefore, this scheme overcomes the fundamental limitation of measurement resolution being limited by the quality factor of the oscillator, and under current experimental conditions, it is expected to detect signals ten orders of magnitude lower than the electroweak scale.
