Scientists have engineered a synthetic monopole in a quantum system for the first time.
"Monopoles" had been predicted by physicist Paul Dirac in 1931 - but remained elusive till now.
To observe and test them in the lab, the researchers created a quantum system - a magnetic field of a cloud of rubidium atoms in a state of matter known as a Bose-Einstein condensate.
Using direct imaging, the researchers found a distinct signature of the Dirac monopole - known as a "Dirac string", the BBC reported.
They study has been published in Nature journal.