Researchers at JPL and Caltech have
developed an instrument for exploring the cosmos and the quantum world.
This new type of amplifier boosts
electrical signals and can be used for everything from studying stars, galaxies
and black holes to exploring the quantum world and developing quantum
computers. An amplifier is a device that increases the strength of a weak
signal.
One of the key features of the new
amplifier is that it incorporates superconductors--materials that allow an
electric current to flow with zero resistance when lowered to certain
temperatures. For their amplifier, the researchers are using titanium nitride
and niobium titanium nitride, which have just the right properties to allow the
pump signal to amplify the weak signal.
Although the amplifier has a host of
potential applications, the reason the researchers built the device was to help
them study the universe. The team built the instrument to boost microwave
signals, but the new design can be used to build amplifiers that help
astronomers observe in a wide range of wavelengths, from radio waves to X-rays.
Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
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