Tracking quantum messages can be key to finding alien life, new research says

The search for aliens has always fascinated scientists and studies have regularly been conducted to find ways in order to unlock the mysterious of our universe. New research suggests that particles of light, also known as photons, can be transmitted over interstellar distances without losing their quantum nature and these kinds of messages can be used by aliens to communicate with Earth.

According to researchers report June 28 in Physical Review D, quantum messages can be a possible way to communicate with aliens and scientists who are looking for extra-terrestrial life need to scan those signals in order to find some possible proof.

In the research paper, theoretical physicist Arjun Berera said that it is quite possible that intelligent aliens may be using quantum communication – something that scientists on earth are also working on at present. In the recent past, a technology that uses quantum particles in order to transport any kind of information has been the subject of a number of studies and experiments around the world.

When it comes to quantum communication on Earth, the problem of “decoherence” means that the particles sometimes lose their strength after interacting with their surroundings.

“Quantum states you generally think of as very delicate, and if there’s any kind of external interaction, you kind of destroy that state,” Berera said according to Science News.

However, when transmitted on an interstellar level, the problem of decoherence is much less likely to happen and that is why the quantum communication may hold the key to finding signals from alien civilisations, Berera and theoretical physicist Jaime Calderón Figueroa, said in their paper.