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quantum tunneling
A quantum mechanical effect in which particles have a finite probability of crossing an energy barrier, such as the energy needed to break a bond with another particle, even though the particle's energy is less than the energy barrier. Quantum tunneling has no counterpart in classical mechanics, in which a particle can never cross an energy barrier with a higher energy level than the particle has. The emission of alpha rays in radioactive decay is a case of quantum tunneling; though the alpha particles are strongly bound to the nucleus and don't have as much energy as the bond does, they still have a finite probability of escaping the nucleus. The design of transistors and many diodes makes use of this effect.
See also radioactivity
Example Sentences
Martinis was awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in physics, alongside Clarke and Devoret, for his doctoral project, a series of experiments in the mid-1980s that proved quantum tunneling was possible with large objects, which became the basis for the development of quantum computers as well as much of the current research in that field.
However, the new study shows that these flips can also occur quantum mechanically through a process called quantum tunneling.
In addition to quantum tunneling, the new research shows a co-tunneling effect, in which groups of tunneling electrons are communicating with each other to drive the electron spins to flip in the same direction.
"But we found that through quantum tunneling, two avalanches happen in sync with each other. This is a result of two large ensembles of electrons talking to each other and, through their interactions, they make these changes. This co-tunneling effect was a surprise."
Destructive quantum interference plays a crucial role in this by eliminating the leaky electron flow from quantum tunneling through the transistor when it is supposed to be switched off.
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