It is increasingly important to understand the spatial dynamics of epidemics.While there are numerous mathematical models of epidemics,there is a scarcity of physical systems with sufficiently well-controlled paramete...It is increasingly important to understand the spatial dynamics of epidemics.While there are numerous mathematical models of epidemics,there is a scarcity of physical systems with sufficiently well-controlled parameters to allow quantitative model testing.It is also challenging to replicate the macro non-equilibrium effects of complex models in microscopic systems.In this work,we demonstrate experimentally a physics analog of epidemic spreading using optically-driven non-equilibrium phase transitions in strongly interacting Rydberg atoms.Using multiple laser beams we can impose any desired spatial structure.The observed spatially localized phase transitions simulate the outbreak of an infectious disease in multiple locations,and the splitting of the outbreak in subregions,as well as the dynamics towards“herd immunity”and“endemic state”in different regimes.The reported results indicate that Rydberg systems are versatile enough to model complex spatial-temporal dynamics.展开更多
基金funding from National Key R&D Program of China(2017YFA0304800)NSFC funding(Grant Nos.U20A20218,61525504,61722510,61435011)+7 种基金the Major Science and Technology Projects in Anhui Province(Grant No.202203a13010001)the Youth Innovation Promotion Association of CAS Grant No.2018490,EPSRC through grant agreements EP/M014398/1,EP/R002061/1,EP/L023024/1,EP/P012000/1,EP/R035482/1,EP/S015973/1,as well as,DSTL,and Durham UniversityThe European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program under Grant No.845218(Marie Curie Fellowship to H.B.)F.N.is supported in part by:Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation(NTT)Research,the Japan Science and Technology Agency(JST)[via the Quantum Leap Flagship Program(Q-LEAP),and the Moonshot R&D Grant Number JPMJMS2061]the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science(JSPS)[via the Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research(KAKENHI)Grant No.JP20H00134]the Army Research Office(ARO)(Grant No.W911NF-18-1-0358)the Asian Office of Aerospace Research and Development(AOARD)(via Grant No.FA2386-20-1-4069)the Foundational Questions Institute Fund(FQXi)via Grant No.FQXi-IAF19-06.
文摘It is increasingly important to understand the spatial dynamics of epidemics.While there are numerous mathematical models of epidemics,there is a scarcity of physical systems with sufficiently well-controlled parameters to allow quantitative model testing.It is also challenging to replicate the macro non-equilibrium effects of complex models in microscopic systems.In this work,we demonstrate experimentally a physics analog of epidemic spreading using optically-driven non-equilibrium phase transitions in strongly interacting Rydberg atoms.Using multiple laser beams we can impose any desired spatial structure.The observed spatially localized phase transitions simulate the outbreak of an infectious disease in multiple locations,and the splitting of the outbreak in subregions,as well as the dynamics towards“herd immunity”and“endemic state”in different regimes.The reported results indicate that Rydberg systems are versatile enough to model complex spatial-temporal dynamics.
