Physics: World's fastest man-made spinning object, 60 billion rpm, created

New Delhi : In a recent development in the field of science, the fastest man-made rotor in the world has been developed, which could possibly help experts to study the insight of quantum mechanics.  With more than 60 billion revolutions per minute, this machine is more than 100,000 times faster than a high-speed dental drill. The team of scientists have synthesised a tiny dumbbell from silica and levitated it in high vacuum using a laser. 

Experts say that the laser can work in a straight line or in a circle - when it is linear, the dumbbell vibrates, and when it is circular, the dumbbell spins. A spinning dumbbell functions as a rotor, and a vibrating dumbbell functions like an instrument for measuring tiny forces and torques, known as a torsion balance. 

"This study has many applications, including material science," said Tongcang Li, an assistant professor of physics and astronomy, and electrical and computer engineering, at Purdue University in Washington. He adds "We can study the extreme conditions different materials can survive in."

Previously, these devices were used to discover gravitational constant and density of Earth, but Li believes that as they become more advanced, they will be able to study things like quantum mechanics and the properties of vacuum. 

Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics which describes nature in terms of smallest scales of energy levels of atoms and subatomic particles. By studying more about this tiny dumbbell spin faster than anything before it, Li's and his team of experts will certainly discover new things about vacuum friction and gravity.