Scientists have detected the pull of gravity on the microscopic scale in a feat that lays the groundwork for probing its nature in the mysterious quantum realm.
In an experiment involving sophisticated superconducting apparatus cooled to within a whisker of absolute zero, and brass weights stuck to an electrical bicycle wheel, physicists recorded a minuscule gravitational tug of 30 quintillionths of a newton on a particle less than a millimetre wide.
The demonstration paves the way for future work in which researchers aim to measure the gravity generated by ever smaller particles to understand how the unusual force behaves in the subatomic world where quantum rules dominate.
“We know that quantum mechanics and general relativity, Einstein’s theory of gravity, are not reconcilable as we formulate them now,” said Tim Fuchs, a postdoctoral experimental physicist at the University of Southampton. “The theories don’t work together, so we know something has to give, or both have to give. This is trying to fill in the gaps with actual experiments.”
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