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Science 18 March 2005:
Vol. 307. no. 5716, pp. 1730 - 1731
DOI: 10.1126/science.1110367
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Perspectives

PHYSICS:
Toward Creating a Rutherford Atom

David M. Villeneuve

Rydberg atoms are atoms with a highly excited electron. In his Perspective, Villeneuve explains that by creating a coherent superposition of Rydberg states, the electron can be made to behave almost like a classical Rutherford atom. He highlights the report by Maeda et al., who show that they can force the electron wave packet to remain localized for thousands of highly elliptical orbits around the nucleus, much like a miniature planetary system. Such experiments help to bridge the gap between the quantum mechanical world and our everyday classical world.

The author is with the National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A 0R6. E-mail: david.villeneuve{at}nrc.ca

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)