In space, no one can hear the virtual particles—but they’re there

One of the most surprising predictions of modern quantum theory is that the vacuum of space is not empty, says a University of Waterloo engineering professor who will speak on the UWindsor campus Monday.

“In fact, quantum theory predicts that it teems with virtual particles flitting in and out of existence,” says Christopher Wilson, who holds a joint appointment with the Institute for Quantum Computing. “Forty years ago, it was suggested that a mirror undergoing relativistic motion could convert virtual photons into directly observable real photons. This effect was later named the dynamical Casimir effect.”

Now, he says, researchers using a superconducting circuit have actually observed the effect for the first time.

His Windsor appearance is part of the 2013 student lecture tour organized by the Canadian Association of Physicists. Free and open to the public, it is set for 3:30 p.m. Monday, March 4, in room 186, Essex Hall.