New Accelerator Experiment Might Determine If Black Holes Destroy, Preserve Universe Information

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In a new paper published in the Physical Review Letters, researchers from the école Polytechnique and National Taiwan University propose a new experiment to solve the information paradox with black holes.

The laws of quantum mechanics state that information can never be wiped out for good. But what about the information contained in black holes? If nothing can escape a black hole, the information contained inside a black hole when it dies is either lost forever or preserved somehow. As early as 1970s, Stephen Hawking has proposed a way to solve the information paradox but until now, it has not been tested as it was considered to be almost impossible.

One way that information can be preserved is through entangled photons, according to Inverse. These are pairs of photons that are linked with each other through quantum states, regardless of distance. As the black hole evaporates, information can escape through an energy burst.

In a new paper published by Gerard Mourou of école Polytechnique and Pisin Chen from the National Taiwan University, the researchers devised an experiment to solve the information paradox. Using a plasma wakefield accelerator, a laser pulse will be fired through a plasma target and create a wake of electrons which will keep building in intensity, the Daily Mail reported.

The accelerator serves as a mirror that simulates the event horizon of a black hole. Once the mirror stops moving, a burst of energy is created. This is similar to a black hole evaporating. The two researchers even devised a way to accelerate the plasma wakefield. Chen and Murou also proposed that the experiment can even help researchers discover further properties of black holes.

While the researchers haven't done the experiment yet, preliminary tests have shown it is possible to carry out the concept although it would be difficult. Since it's impossible to get near a black hole and observe its event horizon, the plasma tidal wave is the next closest thing to solve the information paradox.

Find out more about the information paradox of black holes here: