* Astronomy

Theoretical physicists Alexey Ponomarev, Peter Hänggi, and colleagues at the University of Augsburg, Germany, have proposed designs for a  quantum-mechanical  electric motor. Their motor consists of two ultracold atoms trapped in a ring of laser light. One atom has a electron missing and is electrically charged; the second atom is neutral. By applying an oscillating electric field perpendicular to the plane of the ring, quantum waves would circulate around the ring.

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