For people who want to try making plasma from grapes in a microwave, here are the steps that work for me every time (I’ve done it for friends and highschoolers about 20 times)
1. Cut a large grape (1.5cm diameter) partially in half, leaving just a sliver of skin connecting the two halves.
2. Dry the cut sides by dabbing with a paper towel.
3. Place the grape halves cut side down on a Pyrex dish. Keep the turntable in the microwave (important, since microwaves have hotspots). Place the dish with the grape so that the grape orbits inside the microwave.
4. Microwave on high for 30s.
If you don’t hear a hum and see sparks within 10 seconds, you may have too large a grape. In that case you can try splitting the grape into two quarters, connected by a thin sliver of skin. Don’t forget to dry all the cut sides!
eszed 21 days ago [-]
I've never dried the surfaces, and I put the cut sides up. Also never fails. Gonna try cut-side down when my kid gets up (and if we have some grapes); that might look (even) cooler.
eig 21 days ago [-]
I suppose if the grape is in a puddle of electrolyte, it can short out the quarter wave antenna. So drying probably only matters if your grape is very juicy!
gsf_emergency 20 days ago [-]
Pedantry, from a promateur, but also see the Veritasium tube linked elsewhere here:
0. No cutting needed whatsoever,
but you do need a watch-glass. (Keeps the grapes in contact)
Essentially, when this gets commercialized we'll be able to make room-temperature qubits using two grapes and a diamond in a microwave oven.
This opens up a whole new field of "grapetronics" for scalable quantum computing hardware.
gus_massa 21 days ago [-]
Warning: It may break ypur microwave. Use a spare microwave or ensure your S.O. is at least as crazy as you.
gilleain 21 days ago [-]
Is is naive to think that the same effect could be replicated with something the same size and density (and some other properties?) of the grapes.
Basically, an artificial grape.
xeonmc 21 days ago [-]
While similar substitutes does also let you make some crude sparks, it turns out that the composition and quality of the grapes are crucial in the finessed focusing of energy needed for this application.
Only the grapes grown in vineyards of the finest châteaux are capable of achieving the maximum performance needed for bleeding edge grapetronics.
This propels France into a quantum computing superpower, being in sole control of the limited quantity coveted by nation states as strategic assets, with anciliary equipment such as Taiwanese microwave ovens manufactured by Tatung becoming a critical link in the supply chain.
ohyes 21 days ago [-]
Yes, using anything less than the finest of French grapes from the Champagne region is just a sparking qbit.
eig 21 days ago [-]
I’ve gotten it working with small cherry tomatoes, but you have to cut it into quarters to get the right wavelength.
bookofjoe 21 days ago [-]
AG
pimlottc 21 days ago [-]
I have no idea what a “dimer” is (as opposed to “dimmer”)
gilleain 21 days ago [-]
In chemistry, a 'monomer' is a single unit and a 'dimer' a pair.
Haemoglobin in your blood, for example is a 'tetramer' of four separate units (although technically more like ABAB so a dimer of dimers).
I suspect the grapes take up the role of the molecules here.
tempodox 21 days ago [-]
Sneaky grapes hurling sparks at each other if you put them in a microwave and switch it on.
fastneutron 21 days ago [-]
This might be a good candidate for the 2025 Ig Nobel prize in physics [1].
More seriously, NV centers are one of the most accessible quantum hardware platforms, and do very sensitive measurements on all kinds of interesting stuff.
Immediately ran to the domestic microwave to try generating sparks and plasma with grapes. No success so far, building transparent Tupperware explosion containers before continuing
nom 21 days ago [-]
if you can't get it to work with two whole grapes touching you can also try to cut a grape almost in half, leave a tiny bit of the skin connected and place it folded open with the cut facing up.
NotYourLawyer 21 days ago [-]
Remember, not all Pyrex uses borosilicate glass anymore.
throw5959 21 days ago [-]
Please report back, I'm going to try later too
paltman 21 days ago [-]
Claude, can you please explain this for someone with a high school level understanding of science?
I'll break this down into simpler terms!
You might have seen viral videos or heard about what happens when you put two grapes in a microwave - they create impressive sparks and even plasma (which is like a super-hot, glowing gas, similar to what's in those plasma ball toys).
The key points of this paper are:
First, some background:
- When two grapes are placed close together in a microwave, they act like a special kind of antenna or lens for microwave energy
- This creates an incredibly intense concentration of energy between the grapes (they call this a "hotspot")
What's new in this research:
- The scientists used tiny diamonds that contain special defects called nitrogen-vacancy centers (think of these like extremely sensitive sensors)
- They placed these special diamonds between two grapes in a controlled setup
- Using these diamond sensors, they could measure how strong the magnetic field was between the grapes
- They found that the magnetic field between the grapes was twice as strong as it would be normally
Why this matters:
- Previous research only looked at the electric fields between the grapes
- This study confirms that grapes can also concentrate magnetic fields
- This could be useful for quantum computing and other advanced technologies that need precise control of magnetic fields
Think of it like this: If you put two magnifying glasses next to each other, they can concentrate light into a very bright spot. The grapes are doing something similar, but with microwaves instead of light. The scientists used special diamonds as a tool to measure just how concentrated this "microwave spot" becomes.
---
I don't even try reading stuff like this on my own anymore. Maybe I'm just dumber than most, but I find Claude's explanation so much more accessible.
acrophiliac 21 days ago [-]
I love coming to HN for titles like this that blow my mind because the only thing that I understand is the verb.
20 days ago [-]
nu11ius 21 days ago [-]
"They did physics on a grape"
Finnucane 21 days ago [-]
“These grapes in the fridge are getting old. Should we toss them or can we get a paper out of it?”
1. Cut a large grape (1.5cm diameter) partially in half, leaving just a sliver of skin connecting the two halves.
2. Dry the cut sides by dabbing with a paper towel.
3. Place the grape halves cut side down on a Pyrex dish. Keep the turntable in the microwave (important, since microwaves have hotspots). Place the dish with the grape so that the grape orbits inside the microwave.
4. Microwave on high for 30s.
If you don’t hear a hum and see sparks within 10 seconds, you may have too large a grape. In that case you can try splitting the grape into two quarters, connected by a thin sliver of skin. Don’t forget to dry all the cut sides!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCrtk-pyP0I&t=4m37s
Essentially, when this gets commercialized we'll be able to make room-temperature qubits using two grapes and a diamond in a microwave oven.
This opens up a whole new field of "grapetronics" for scalable quantum computing hardware.
Basically, an artificial grape.
Only the grapes grown in vineyards of the finest châteaux are capable of achieving the maximum performance needed for bleeding edge grapetronics.
This propels France into a quantum computing superpower, being in sole control of the limited quantity coveted by nation states as strategic assets, with anciliary equipment such as Taiwanese microwave ovens manufactured by Tatung becoming a critical link in the supply chain.
Haemoglobin in your blood, for example is a 'tetramer' of four separate units (although technically more like ABAB so a dimer of dimers).
I suspect the grapes take up the role of the molecules here.
More seriously, NV centers are one of the most accessible quantum hardware platforms, and do very sensitive measurements on all kinds of interesting stuff.
1. https://improbable.com/ig/about-the-ig-nobel-prizes/
I'll break this down into simpler terms!
You might have seen viral videos or heard about what happens when you put two grapes in a microwave - they create impressive sparks and even plasma (which is like a super-hot, glowing gas, similar to what's in those plasma ball toys).
The key points of this paper are:
First, some background: - When two grapes are placed close together in a microwave, they act like a special kind of antenna or lens for microwave energy - This creates an incredibly intense concentration of energy between the grapes (they call this a "hotspot")
What's new in this research: - The scientists used tiny diamonds that contain special defects called nitrogen-vacancy centers (think of these like extremely sensitive sensors) - They placed these special diamonds between two grapes in a controlled setup - Using these diamond sensors, they could measure how strong the magnetic field was between the grapes - They found that the magnetic field between the grapes was twice as strong as it would be normally
Why this matters: - Previous research only looked at the electric fields between the grapes - This study confirms that grapes can also concentrate magnetic fields - This could be useful for quantum computing and other advanced technologies that need precise control of magnetic fields
Think of it like this: If you put two magnifying glasses next to each other, they can concentrate light into a very bright spot. The grapes are doing something similar, but with microwaves instead of light. The scientists used special diamonds as a tool to measure just how concentrated this "microwave spot" becomes.
---
I don't even try reading stuff like this on my own anymore. Maybe I'm just dumber than most, but I find Claude's explanation so much more accessible.