More than 50 years ago, physicist Sir Roger Penrose proposed the surprising idea that under the right conditions, it might be possible to extract energy from rapidly rotating black holes. His concept is that a particle that enters a black hole’s ergosphere (the region in which space-time is dragged by the object’s rotation) could split into two. One fragment falls into the black hole, and the other fragment escapes, carrying away more energy than the original particle. Later, physicist Yakov Zeldovich expanded on this concept and predicted that waves interacting with objects rotating at sufficient speed could also gain energy and be amplified.
Now, researchers at the State University of New York Graduate Center Advanced Science Research Center (CUNY ASRC) have demonstrated an experimental approach inspired by these long-standing theories. writing in diary naturethe team showed that wave amplification can be achieved using a device that simulates extreme rotation without physically rotating it.
Reproducing extreme physics through synthetic rotation
Instead of mechanically rotating objects, the researchers built high-frequency devices whose properties change rapidly in both space and time. This carefully designed system creates the illusion of ultra-high speed rotation, reaching effective rotational speeds that far exceed those achievable by traditional mechanical systems. By replacing physical motion with synthetic rotations, researchers have overcome challenges that have limited experimental studies of extreme rotational physics for decades.
“Our approach facilitates a new method of wave-matter interaction in which waves with selected rotational properties extract energy from temporally engineered rotations, producing a form of broadband selective amplification,” said principal investigator Andrea Al, Distinguished Professor of Physics and Einstein Professor at the SUNY Graduate Center and founding director of the SUNY ASRC Photonics Initiative.
Hadise Nasari, lead author and postdoctoral fellow in the Photonics Initiative at the State University of New York ASRC, said the experiment turns a long-standing theoretical concept into a practical research tool.
“The success of this experiment moves ideas about extreme rotational mechanics from theory to practice and creates a versatile experimental platform to explore a wide range of phenomena at the intersection of astrophysics, wave physics, and quantum science,” Nasari said. “This research has implications for advances in basic science, communications, optics, and photonics.”
How the experiment works
Researchers set out to answer basic questions. Can electromagnetic waves interacting with a completely stationary device behave as if it were encountering a superfast rotating object, extracting energy from its resultant motion?
To investigate, they constructed a ring of electronic resonators whose properties were rapidly tuned in carefully synchronized sequences. Although the hardware itself never moved, these timing changes created a movement pattern on the ring. As a result, the electromagnetic waves effectively made the system experience as if it were rotating at an abnormal speed.
“Waves with appropriate rotational properties extracted energy from the system and were amplified, reproducing the essential physics of the Penrose-Zeldovich process,” said co-lead author Hadi Moussa, a former doctoral student in the State University of New York ASRC Photonics Initiative. “Our approach relies on engineered metamaterials designed to control how waves propagate.”
Potential applications beyond black hole physics
Because synthetic rotation can mimic movement faster than the speed of light, researchers now have a controlled laboratory platform to explore physical situations that are impossible to study directly. This research creates new opportunities to investigate extreme physics, while also suggesting future advances in wireless communications, optics, photonics, and quantum technologies.
The researchers note that additional work is needed to translate these ideas into actual devices. They also think the same principles can be applied to photonic and quantum systems, opening new possibilities for controlling light, processing information, and studying wave behavior inspired by the universe’s most extreme environments.
This research was supported by the U.S. Department of Defense, the National Science Foundation, and the Simmons Foundation.
