The gravitational effect of the free fall of quantum objects was directly measured for the first time, consistent with Einstein’s theoretical predictions.

The gravitational effect of free fall of quantum objects was directly measured for the first time, consistent with Einstein’s theoretical predictions.

The international research team successfully measured the gravitational effects of freely falling quantum objects for the first time. The experimental results are consistent with Einstein’s theoretical predictions. This research was conducted jointly by Ben-Gurion University of Israel, Ulm University in Germany, and Oxford University in the UK. The related paper was published in *Science Advances* on September 2nd, local time. The core device used in the experiment is the “quantum Galileo interferometer”. The team utilized rubidium atom clouds cooled to near absolute zero. Through microwave pulses, the atoms were placed in a quantum superposition state, allowing them to propagate along two paths simultaneously. Subsequently, a precisely controlled magnetic field was applied to make some atoms resist gravity and remain stationary, while others fell freely. Eventually, the two waves merged to produce interference, enabling the measurement of tiny quantum phase differences. This experiment confirms the validity of Einstein’s equivalence principle in quantum objects, providing key evidence for unifying gravity and quantum theory. However, it does not prove that gravity itself is quantum, nor does it refute Penrose’s argument that large-mass quantum superposition states may fail.