Gravitational waves may be hidden in the light atoms emit

Gravitational waves are tiny ripples in spacetime created by powerful cosmic events such as colliding black holes. Until now, scientists have detected them by measuring extremely small changes in distance using huge instruments that stretch for kilometers. A new theoretical study, accepted for publication in Physical Review Letters, suggests a very different strategy. Researchers from Stockholm University, Nordita, and the University of Tübingen propose looking at how thes...