Two states of matter they didnt teach you about in school Until Now!

Plasma

Bose-Einstein Condensate

We all know about:

SOLIDS LIQUIDS GASES

Lower Temperature

Higher Temperature

But what happens if you raise the temperature to super-high levels between 1000C and 1,000,000,000C ?

Will everything just be a gas?

NO!
If the gas is made up of particles which carry an electric charge (ionized particles), but the entire gas as a whole has no electric charge, and if the density is not too high, then we can get

The 4th state of matter:

PLASMA

Some places where plasmas are found

1. Flames

2. Lightning

3. Aurora (Northern Lights)

4. Neon lights

5. Stars

Stars make up 99% of the total matter in the Universe. Therefore, 99% of everything that exists in the entire Universe is in the plasma state.

The Sun is an example of a star in its plasma state

6. Clouds of gas and dust around stars

So now we know all about four states of matter:

SOLIDS LIQUIDS GASES PLASMAS
(only for low density ionized gases)

Lower Temperature

Higher Temperature

But now what happens if you lower the temperature way, way, down to 100 nano degrees above Absolute Zero (-273C)

Will everything just be a frozen solid?

Not Necessarily!
In 1924 (82 years ago), two scientists, Albert Einstein and Satyendra Bose predicted a 5th state of matter which would occur at very very low temperatures. Einstein Bose

Finally, in 1995 (only 11 years ago!), Wolfgang Ketterle and his team of graduate students (like me) discovered the 5th state of matter for the first time.
Ketterle and his students

The 5th state of matter:

Bose-Einstein Condensate

In a Bose-Einstein condensate, atoms can no longer bounce around as individuals. Instead they must all act in exactly the same way, and you can no longer tell them apart!

Here is a picture a computer took of

Bose-Einstein Condensation
The big peak happens when all the atoms act exactly the same way! (We cant see Bose-Einstein condensation with our eyes because the atoms are too small)

Some other computer images of Bose-Einstein Condensates

To really understand Bose-Einstein condensate you need to know

Quantum Physics

In 2002, Ketterle and two other scientists received the highest award in science for discovering Bose-Einstein condensate:

The Nobel Prize

The five states of matter:

BOSEEINSTEIN SOLIDS CONDENSATE

PLASMAS LIQUIDS GASES

(only for low density ionized gases)

Lower Temperature

Higher Temperature