Physicists Propose Time Crystals Could Flow in Time, a New State of Matter

A team of physicists has proposed that time crystals, a phase of matter that repeats in time rather than space, could exhibit a property analogous to viscosity—suggesting a strange new state where matter can 'flow' in time. The concept, explored in a recent theoretical study, builds on the 2012 proposal by Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek and subsequent experimental realizations. The researchers, including scientists from the University of California, Berkeley and the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems, describe how time crystals might respond to perturbations with a temporal 'flow' that resists changes, much like a liquid resists flow in space. This could open new avenues for understanding non-equilibrium phases of matter and has potential implications for quantum computing and precision timekeeping. The work, published in Physical Review Letters, represents a significant step in bridging condensed matter physics and the study of time. As experimental techniques advance, the search for observable signatures of this temporal viscosity may soon move from theory to the laboratory.