Quantum system virtually cooled to half of its actual temperature
As the researchers explained, the results are based on the idea that there is a strong connection between temperature and quantum entanglement.
"A modern perspective in physics is that temperature is an emergent property of quantum entanglement," Cotler told Phys.org. "In other words, certain patterns of quantum entanglement give rise to the familiar notion of temperature. By purposefully manipulating the pattern of entanglement in a system, we can gain access to lower temperatures. While these remarkable ideas were previously understood theoretically, we figured out how to implement them experimentally."
"We may be able to use quantum virtual cooling to 'cross' what are called finite-temperature phase transitions," Cotler said. "This seems quite bizarre—it would be like taking two glasses of liquid water, and by making a quantum measurement, you learn about the properties of solid ice.
Due to their quantum properties, quantum simulators can perform certain tasks like this that are out of the reach of classical computers, which cannot leverage quantum entanglement and superposition.
See the full story here: https://phys.org/news/2019-08-quantum-virtually-cooled-actual-temperature.html