See Nothing: Did a Magnetar Make Empty Stellar Space Visible? | GW Today
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A GW physics student's study may prove that a magnetar's extreme magnetic field can physically alter the vacuum of space — a 90-year-old prediction finally within reach.
Quantum ElectrodynamicsVacuum BirefringenceMagnetar PhysicsQuantum Field Theory
Theory Briefing
- A magnetar — a neutron star with the universe's strongest known magnetic field — may have made empty space itself behave differently, according to the new study.
- The finding could validate a 90-year-old quantum theory predicting that extreme magnetic fields warp the properties of a vacuum.
- The research was led by a GW physics student, making a landmark potential confirmation of quantum electrodynamics a student-driven result.
- If confirmed, the result would mean 'empty' space is not truly empty — its properties can be rewritten by sufficiently powerful magnetic forces.