Test of the gravitational interaction between milligram masses using a miniature torsion pendulum
Abstract
Precision tabletop measurements of gravitational force are important for probing the fundamental nature of gravitation. Although gravitational experiments have spanned test masses from macroscopic objects to individual quantum systems, the mutual gravitational interaction between small—particularly microscopic—masses remains largely unexplored. Recent advances have extended such studies into the sub-100 mg regime, however, probing gravitation at still smaller masses continues to pose significant challenges. Here, we report a measurement of gravitational interaction between two 7.6 mg silicon wafers using a miniature Cavendish-type torsion balance combined with a rotating mass-modulation technique. Over separation distances from 0.654 to 1.554 mm, the measured forces agree with Newtonian predictions, achieving a maximum uncertainty of 50 aN (2 σ ) and enabling constraints on Yukawa-type deviations from Newtonian gravitation. From these data, we determine the gravitational constant G = 6.67(35) × 10 ⁻¹¹ m ³ kg ⁻¹ s ⁻² (1 σ ). This work measured the gravitational interaction between milligram-scale objects, representing a significant step toward bridging the classical and quantum regimes of gravitation.
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BibTeX
@article{an2026test,
title = {{Test of the gravitational interaction between milligram masses using a miniature torsion pendulum}},
author = {Zheng-Jie An and Wen-Hai Tan and Wen-Can Dong and Cheng-Gang Qin and Zu-Xing Deng and Zhi-Chao Duan and Du Chen and Yang Huang and Qi-Long Gong and Lin Zhu and Liang-Cheng Tu and Jun Luo and Shan-Qing Yang},
journal = {Nature Communications},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1038/s41467-026-78187-4},
url = {https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-78187-4},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Test of the gravitational interaction between milligram masses using a miniature torsion pendulum
AU - Zheng-Jie An
AU - Wen-Hai Tan
AU - Wen-Can Dong
AU - Cheng-Gang Qin
AU - Zu-Xing Deng
AU - Zhi-Chao Duan
AU - Du Chen
AU - Yang Huang
AU - Qi-Long Gong
AU - Lin Zhu
AU - Liang-Cheng Tu
AU - Jun Luo
AU - Shan-Qing Yang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/07
JO - Nature Communications
DO - 10.1038/s41467-026-78187-4
UR - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-78187-4
AB - Precision tabletop measurements of gravitational force are important for probing the fundamental nature of gravitation. Although gravitational experiments have spanned test masses from macroscopic objects to individual quantum systems, the mutual gravitational interaction between small—particularly microscopic—masses remains largely unexplored. Recent advances have extended such studies into the sub-100 mg regime, however, probing gravitation at still smaller masses continues to pose significant challenges. Here, we report a measurement of gravitational interaction between two 7.6 mg silicon wafers using a miniature Cavendish-type torsion balance combined with a rotating mass-modulation technique. Over separation distances from 0.654 to 1.554 mm, the measured forces agree with Newtonian predictions, achieving a maximum uncertainty of 50 aN (2 σ ) and enabling constraints on Yukawa-type deviations from Newtonian gravitation. From these data, we determine the gravitational constant G = 6.67(35) × 10 ⁻¹¹ m ³ kg ⁻¹ s ⁻² (1 σ ). This work measured the gravitational interaction between milligram-scale objects, representing a significant step toward bridging the classical and quantum regimes of gravitation.
SN - 2041-1723
ER -