"The only thing that goes faster than light, it turns out, is darkness. More specifically, individual dark spots known as optical vortices, or phase singularities, do so."
"Phase singularities do not carry energy or information and thus can move 'superluminally' without breaking causality, the physicists wrote in their study."
"Our discovery reveals universal laws of nature shared by all types of waves, from sound waves and fluid flows to complex systems such as superconductors."
An international team of physicists discovered that optical vortices, or phase singularities, can travel faster than light. These dark spots occur when light waves oscillate and twist, creating areas where peaks and troughs cancel each other out. This phenomenon does not violate Einstein's theory of relativity, as these vortices do not carry mass, energy, or information. The research confirms a prediction from the 1970s and reveals universal laws applicable to various types of waves, including sound and fluid flows.
Read at www.scientificamerican.com
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