Sign and Sight, a German site, interviews a mad scientist of quantum mechanics. An excerpt:

"Die Weltwoche: Professor Zeilinger, the media calls you "Mister Beam". You personally were absolutely against the association with beaming. Why?

Anton Zeilinger: Because it gives the wrong impression of my work. "Beaming" exists only in science fiction films, where it was invented as a money-saving device. Actually having to land on all those planets runs up huge production costs. Beaming is cheaper: 1,2,3 and you're somewhere else. But that's a long way from anything we're doing here.

What are you doing?

Transferring the properties of light particles over certain distances onto other light particles, with no time delay. The procedure is based on phenomena which exist only in the quantum world, and is known as "quantum teleportation."

It sounds almost as exciting as "beaming".

Yes, but there are two major differences. Firstly, we transfer properties, not matter. And secondly, until now we have had more success with light particles and occasionally with atoms, not with larger objects.

In 1997 your team successfully performed the first quantum teleportation. What distances can be crossed with this technique today?


Last year we teleported light particles across a distance of 600 metres under the Danube – that's the current world record. In theory the range is limitless. I always say that when the Americans really start their Mars mission, the 280-day journey will be deadly boring for the astronauts. They might be interested in taking part in a few teleportation experiments on the way, and increase the record by a hundred million kilometres or so.

You said that you only transfer properties, not particles. Would "copying" not be a more accurate expression than "teleportation"?

No. Firstly it differs from simple copying in that the original loses all its properties. That is something so crazy that it could only exist in the quantum world. You can actually remove all the properties of a particle and give them to another particle.

But both particles remain where they are.

Yes, but the question is: how do I recognise an original? I maintain: solely through its properties. Matter itself is completely irrelevant. If swap all my carbon atoms for other carbon atoms, I am still Anton Zeilinger.

This happens over the course of our lives. We are continually changing our cells.

Exactly. The only important thing are my properties, and they are based on the order of the atoms – that what makes me who I am. The atoms are unimportant in themselves. So when we transfer characteristics during teleportation, in this sense we are actually transferring the originals.

Some teams of physicists are already teleporting single atoms. So what really stands in the way of beaming humans?

We are talking about quantum phenomena here – we have no idea how we could produce these with larger objects. And even if it was possible, the problems involved would be huge. Firstly: for physical reasons, the original has to be completely isolated from its environment for the transfer to work. There has to be a total vacuum for it to work. And it is a well-known fact that this is not particularly healthy for human beings. Secondly, you would take all the properties from a person and transfer them onto another. This means producing a being who no longer has any hair colour, no eye colour, nix. A man without qualities! This is not only unethical – it's so crazy that it's impossible to imagine...."