Black holes behave like quantum particles a new study has revealed. (Image credit: NightCafe Creator AI)


For the better part of a century, quantum physics and the general theory of relativity have been a marriage on the rocks. Each is perfect in its own way, the two just can't stand each other when in the same room.
Einstein tried many times to combine these two theories but failed. These two theories are so different from each other that one theory is used at the particle level and the other at the macro level. But scientists want to combine these two principles to form a new unified theory, which can be used both at the macro and micro level.

Now a mathematical proof on the quantum nature of black holes just might show us how the two can reconcile, at least enough to produce a grand new theory on how the Universe works on cosmic and microcosmic scales.

We already know that the mass of a black hole distorts space-time as predicted by Einstein's general theory of relativity. So, if we know the mass of the black hole, we can calculate the deformation in space-time. But what if a black hole shows two different masses at the same time, e.g., a black hole that has infinite mass and zero mass at the same time, how would general relativity explain it?

How would general relativity affect space-time for two different masses at the same time. This is what scientists have recently discovered about black holes.

a new study reveals Black holes have properties characteristic of quantum particles, suggesting that this puzzling cosmic object can be at the same time small and big, heavy and light, or dead and alive, just like the legendary Schrödinger's cat.

 A team of physicists has mathematically demonstrated a weird quirk concerning how these mind-bending dense objects might exist in a state of quantum superposition, simultaneously occupying a spectrum of possible characteristics.

Their calculations showed the superpositions of mass in a theoretical type of black hole called the BTZ black hole occupy surprisingly different bands of masses simultaneously.

In the quantum world particles on a quantum, scale can exist in multiple states at the same time. This is most commonly illustrated by Schrödinger's cat, which can be both dead and alive simultaneously.

But, for black holes, we wanted to see whether they could have wildly different masses at the same time, and it turns out they do. Imagine you're both broad and tall, as well as short and skinny at the same time – it's a situation that is intuitively confusing since we're anchored in the world of traditional physics. But this is the reality for quantum black holes.

The extreme gravity surrounding black holes makes an excellent laboratory for probing quantum gravity – the rolling continuum of spacetime according to the general theory of relativity wedded to quantum mechanical theory, which describes the physical Universe in terms of discrete quantities, such as particles.

Models based on certain types of black holes just might lead to a single theory that could explain particles and gravity. Some of the effects observed around a black hole can't be described under general relativity, for instance. For this, we need quantum gravity – a unified theory that incorporates both sets of rules and somehow gets them to play nicely.

The results, the researchers say, provide a path for future investigation of quantum gravity concepts, such as quantum black holes and superposed space-time. In order to develop a complete description of quantum gravity, the inclusion of these concepts is crucial.

Their research also allows for a more detailed investigation into that superposed spacetime, and the effects it has on particles within it.

"The Universe is revealing to us that it's always more strange, mysterious, and fascinating than most of us could have ever imagined," says quantum physicist Magdalena Zych of the University of Queensland.