Bill Philips won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1997 for developing methods to cool and trap atoms with lasers. His work has led to the creation of more accurate atomic clocks, in which the “ticker” is an atom that vibrates at a certain frequency. Colder atoms move more slowly, making it easier for the clock to be accurate. Originally from Pennsylvania, Phillips got his undergraduate degree from Juniata College and his doctorate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He is a physics professor at the University of Maryland.
What He’ll Talk About
The lecture takes place Oct. 1 at 7:30 PM in Columbia 150.The demonstration is called “Time, Einstein and the Coolest Stuff on Earth.” He’ll use liquid nitrogen to show what extreme cold does to objects and give an idea how cold absolute zero is.
“Outer space is much, much hotter than absolute zero,” Phillips explained. “And liquid nitrogen is much, much hotter than outer space.” He will also demonstrate how he and his colleagues hold onto atoms when they approach absolute zero.
Fun Stuff
This isn’t going to be the average science lecture; think more along the lines of Bill Nye the Science Guy. Levitation is key to Phillips’ research, and he’ll be levitating an object in the lecture. Levitation isn’t magic and it’s pretty easy to understand.
Everything is made up of atoms, which all contain electrons. When you surround electrons with a magnetic field, they will rearrange themselves to oppose the field because it unsettles them. This creates an oppositional force, such as when magnets oppose each other. The force can get big enough to override gravity, and the object will float. With the right magnetic field, you can levitate almost anything – even a frog.
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