Quantum Experiments Impose a Fundamental Ceiling on Electrical Resistance
Researchers using ultracold potassium atoms in an optical lattice demonstrated that resistivity caused by particle collisions increases but saturates at a finite ceiling, revealing a microscopic limit to resistivity that could extend to metals. The quantum enhancement of collision chances—atoms acting as larger effective particles—drives the initial rise, but as interactions strengthen the system reaches a plateau, offering experimental insight into resistivity in quantum materials and informing studies of strongly correlated systems. The work, led by Joseph H. Thywissen and collaborators across the University of Toronto, ENS Paris-Saclay, and Lehigh University, was published in Physical Review Letters.
