Summary
NONTECHNICAL SUMMARY So-called "emergent" behavior occurs when a large number of particles act together in concert to produce phenomena that are not possible with individual particles. A fascinating example occurs in quantum mechanical systems with a large number of electrons, such as semiconductors. Each electron carries one unit of electric charge and cannot be split. However, under certain conditions, quantum effects conspire to produce emergent particles called “anyons” that each carry a fraction of an electric charge. This striking phenomenon provides a potential platform to build a st
