Scientists Succeed With Teleportation Experiment

This story gets a little heady and, to be honest, we're not entirely sure we completely understand it ourselves. What we do know is that scientists have made a huge advancement in the field of teleportation, taking a step necessary to the development of quantum computers.

Scientists managed to teleport information from one atom to another from a distance of about one meter. While this isn't really getting us much closer to the 'Star Trek'-like ability to beam people around the universe, it does allow for instantaneous transmission of information without it passing through physical space.

Previously, similar accomplishments have been made with photons (the basic unit of light) and between nearby atoms with the assistance of a third, but these have not proven useful for the long-term storage and long-distance transmission of information.

This breakthrough was accomplished using a phenomena known as quantum entanglement. Atomic and sub-atomic particles can be entangled, meaning their states (such as spin or polarization) are linked, regardless of distance and obstacles. The state is unknowable until a measurement of either particle is made (see Schrödinger's cat), but once the state of one particle is measured the state of the other is instantly determined.

Once the atoms are entwined, the state of atom A is measured, destroying the data, which then reappears when the scientists go to retrieve it from atom B. The information isn't transmitted from A to B, it "teleports," instantaneously disappearing and reappearing with out any interaction between the atoms.

Not confused enough? Hit the read link for more head-scratching detail on the experiment. [From: FOXNews.com]

Source : http://www.switched.com/2009/01/26/scientists-succeed-with-teleportation-experiment/