"Close to absolute zero, some atoms and molecules have been made to form a quantum material called a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC). In this material, the particles are all in their lowest possible energy state and behave as a single entity.
"However, despite Einstein and Bose's prediction, cajoling photons to drop into their lowest energy state and form a BEC has proved difficult. This is because the unruly particles of light become absorbed by the surrounding material when cooled, rather than shedding their energy.
"Now Martin Weitz of the University of Bonn in Germany and colleagues have managed to lower photons' energies without losing them. "This is the main trick of the experiment," Weitz says. And they did it at room temperature."
New Scientist Link: Sea of photons made to act as one 'super-photon'
Michio Kaku on Bose-Einstein Condensates:
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