For over 100 years, physicists argued over how much momentum light carries in materials like glass or water, popularly known in the Physics world as the Abraham-Minkowski debate. Now, a new study shows the missing piece—spin. By projecting momentum onto light’s spin, both answers fit together. Minkowski gives the magnitude, Abraham gives the average force we measure. This breakthrough reshapes optics, lasers and quantum tech, proving that light’s twist unlocks the mystery.
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