SMRTR Science & EngineeringMar 21, 2025Interesting Engineering

The butterfly effect: A misaligned experiment accidentally unfolds quantum wings

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Princeton researchers accidentally observed Hofstadter's butterfly, a fractal energy pattern in quantum materials predicted 50 years ago but never seen. The discovery occurred while studying superconductivity in twisted graphene layers, using advanced microscopy to directly visualize electron energy levels and interactions in these complex materials.

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