News Physics

Signal of elusive Majorana particle emerges in a nanowire

Evidence backs existence of exotic entity that is its own antiparticle

atom-thick iron nanowire with possible Majorana particles

CLOSING IN  An atom-thick iron nanowire atop a lead crystal, illustrated here based on microscope observations, may harbor a pair of elusive Majorana particles. The red spot in the zoomed-in image indicates that the particle is confined to the end of the wire, just as theory predicts.  

Yazdani Lab/Princeton Univ. 

By Andrew Grant

- More than 2 years ago

Blips of electric current at the end of an atom-thick wire have brought physicists one step closer to confirming the existence of Majorana fermions, particles proposed 77 years ago that are their own antiparticles.