Quantum “Pinball” State of Matter: Electrons That Conduct and Insulate at the Same Time

Quantum pinball electron state visualization

Physicists at Florida State University (FSU) have uncovered a fascinating new phase of matter — a “quantum pinball state” in which electrons act both as conductors and insulators at the same time. In this bizarre quantum regime, some electrons freeze into a rigid crystalline lattice while others move freely around them, much like balls ricocheting around fixed pins in a pinball machine. The discovery offers a new perspective on how quantum materials behave and could pave the way for breakthroughs in quantum computing, spintronics, and superconductivity.

The research, published in npj Quantum Materials, was led by Dr. Aman Kumar, Prof. Hitesh Changlani, and Prof. Cyprian Lewandowski of FSU’s National High Magnetic Field Laboratory. Their study explores how electrons in a two-dimensional “moiré lattice” can transition between solid-like and liquid-like states under certain conditions, forming what physicists call a generalized Wigner crystal.

The Quantum Dance of Electrons

To understand the phenomenon, it helps to recall that electricity flows through conductors via the collective movement of electrons — similar to how water flows through pipes. However, under extreme quantum confinement, electrons can organize themselves into ordered patterns due to mutual repulsion, forming what’s known as a Wigner crystal. Predicted by physicist Eugene Wigner in 1934, this electron crystal was thought to exist only under very specific conditions, such as in ultraclean two-dimensional materials at very low densities and temperatures.

The FSU team discovered that, in more complex 2D systems — particularly those with moiré patterns created by stacking slightly misaligned atomic layers — the situation becomes richer. Here, electrons can form various geometric arrangements such as honeycomb or stripe-like lattices instead of the traditional triangular Wigner structure. The researchers call these configurations generalized Wigner crystals.

Modeling Quantum Phases with Supercomputers

Using FSU’s Research Computing Center and the U.S. National Science Foundation’s ACCESS high-performance computing infrastructure, the team performed extensive quantum simulations. They relied on advanced numerical methods — including exact diagonalization, tensor-network modeling, and Monte Carlo algorithms — to track how electrons behave collectively when quantum effects and long-range interactions are taken into account.

Each electron carries two pieces of quantum information (spin and charge), and when thousands interact simultaneously, the resulting system becomes extraordinarily complex. The researchers developed computational frameworks that simplify these interactions into network-like models, allowing them to map out energy landscapes and predict when crystalline or fluid-like phases emerge.

The “Pinball” Phase — A Quantum Hybrid

During these simulations, the researchers uncovered a remarkable intermediate phase where some electrons freeze into place while others remain mobile. This hybrid behavior — part solid, part liquid — is what they dubbed the quantum pinball state. The frozen electrons act like the pins in a pinball machine, while the delocalized electrons bounce between them, creating a dynamic coexistence of conductive and insulating regions.

“This pinball phase is extremely exciting,” said Prof. Cyprian Lewandowski. “It’s the first time we’ve observed a quantum mechanical effect where some electrons want to freeze and others want to move around freely. The result is a material that’s both conducting and insulating simultaneously.”

Why This Discovery Matters

This quantum “dual personality” provides new clues about how to manipulate matter at its most fundamental level. By tuning so-called quantum knobs — such as electron density, lattice geometry, or magnetic field strength — researchers can trigger transitions between insulating, metallic, and magnetic states. Understanding these phase transitions could inform the design of future technologies, including:

“Being able to identify the conditions where electrons switch from solid-like to liquid-like behavior gives us a toolkit for designing entirely new kinds of materials,” explained Dr. Aman Kumar. “It’s like learning which dials to turn on a quantum control panel to make matter behave in extraordinary ways.”

Connecting Quantum Theory and Future Technology

Beyond fundamental physics, this work contributes to a growing field known as quantum materials design — the effort to engineer new phases of matter through controlled quantum interactions. By bridging theoretical modeling with experimental data, researchers are learning how to exploit the cooperative behavior of electrons to create materials that can store more data, conduct electricity with zero loss, or serve as the foundation for next-generation quantum networks.

In this sense, the “quantum pinball state” is more than an exotic curiosity: it’s a window into the hidden architecture of quantum matter, where order and motion coexist to form the basis of future quantum technologies.

Original article: https://phys.org/news/2025-11-quantum-pinball-state-electrons-insulating.html
DOI: 10.1038/s41535-025-00792-1

This article on Quantum Server Networks was prepared with the assistance of advanced AI technologies to enhance clarity, structure, and SEO optimization for materials-science readers.

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