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physicist claim they may have found a long - expect explanation for dark energy , the mysterious force that ’s driving the accelerated expansion of the existence , a raw preprint study steer .
Their calculations suggest that , at the smallest scales , space - meter behaves in a deeply quantum way , disagree drastically from the smooth , continuous social structure we experience in everyday biography . According to their determination , the coordinates of space - prison term do not " commute " — meaning the ordering in which they come out in equations feign the outcome . This is similar to how a particle ’s lieu and velocity conduct inquantum auto-mechanic .
An exterior view of The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) mounted atop the 4-meter Mayall Telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona.
One of the most striking consequences of this quantum outer space - time , as predicted bystring possibility , is that it naturally go to cosmic acceleration . Moreover , the investigator encounter that the rate at which this acceleration decreases over time aligns unmistakably well with the latest observations from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument ( DESI ) .
" consider through the lens system of our work , you could conceive ofthe DESI resultas the first observational grounds suffer string theory and perhaps the first evident consequences of cosmic string theory and quantum gravity , " study co - authorMichael Kavic , a professor at SUNY Old Westbury , told Live Science via email .
The mystery of the universe’s expansion
In 1998 , two independent teams — the Supernova Cosmology Project and the gamey - Z Supernova Search Team — get a line that the universe ’s expansion was not slowing down , as previously consider , but was or else accelerating . They reached this conclusion by studying distant supernova , which appeared dimmer than expected . This acceleration imply the bearing of a mysterious entity permeating blank , later dubbeddark Department of Energy .
Related:‘The universe has thrown us a curveball ' : Largest - ever single-valued function of space reveals we might have gotten dark-skinned vim entirely incorrect
However , the origin of dark vim has remained elusive . A popular hypothesis hint it arises from quantum fluctuation in the vacuity , standardised to those seen in the electromagnetic bailiwick . Yet , when physicists attempt to cypher the expansion rate based on this estimate , they come at a value that was 120 order of magnitude too large — a astonishing discrepancy .
An exterior view of The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) mounted atop the 4-meter Mayall Telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona.
Recent DESI observations further complicated the movie . concord to theStandard Model of primary particles , if dark energy were simply a vacuity free energy , its tightness should persist constant over time . However , DESI information indicate that the acceleration rate is not secure but that it decreases over prison term — something the Standard Model does not predict .
Solving the mystery with string theory
To handle these inconsistencies , the researchers turn to strand theory , one of the lead candidates for a quantum theory of gravity . Unlike the Standard Model , which treats elementary mote as decimal point - like , string theory propose that they are in reality diminutive , vibrating , one - dimensional objects call off twine . These strings , depending on their style of vibration , give rise to different particles — including the graviton , the suppositious quantum carrier ofgravity .
In a newpaperthat was post in the preprint database arXiv but has not been peer - reviewed , physicists Sunhaeng Hur , Djordje Minic , Tatsu Takeuchi ( Virginia Tech ) , Vishnu Jejjala ( University of the Witwatersrand ) , and Michael Kavic applied string hypothesis to analyze space - time at the quantum level .
By replacing the Standard Model ’s description of particles with the framework from strand possibility , the researcher found that place - prison term itself is inherently quantum and noncommutative , meaning the order in which co-ordinate appear in equations matters .
This extremist going from classic purgative provide them to derive the properties of dark energy not just from experimental data , but directly from a fundamental strong-arm theory . Their model not only concede a dark energy density that closely matches observational data but also correctly omen that this energy should decrease over clip , aligning with DESI ’s findings .
One of the most striking aspect of their result is that the value of blue get-up-and-go calculate on two vastly different length scale of measurement : the Planck duration , the fundamental graduated table of quantum gravity , which is about 10⁻³³ centimeter ; and the size of the world , which is zillion of light - eld across . Such a connexion between the humble and big scales in the universe is extremely unusual in physics and suggests that dark vitality is deeply draw to the quantum nature of space - time itself .
" This suggestion at a deeper connexion between quantum gravity and the dynamical properties of nature that had been supposed to be perpetual , " Kavic articulate . " It may turn out that a fundamental mistake we carry with us is that the basic delineate properties of our existence are static when in fact they are not . "
Experimental tests and future prospects
Although the squad ’s explanation of the creation ’s accelerated expansion is a important theoretic breakthrough , main experimental tests are needed to confirm their simulation . The researchers have proposed concrete fashion to test their ideas .
One line of evidence " involves detecting complicated quantum preventative design , which is impossible in standard quantum natural philosophy but should hap in quantum gravitation , " Minic add .
Interference appears when undulation , such as light or matter undulation , lap and either overstate or cancel each other out , creating characteristic patterns . In conventional quantum shop mechanic , interference observe well - understood regulation , typically involving two or more potential quantum paths . However , high - order interference — forecast by some quantum gravity model — suggests more complex interactions that go beyond these stock patterns . Detecting such effects in the lab would be a groundbreaking mental test of quantum gravitational attraction .
" These are tabletop experimentation that could be performed in the near future — within three to four years . "
" There are many implications of our approach to quantum gravitational force , " saidDjordje Minic , a physicist at Virginia Tech and co - author of the paper , in an email . One stock of evidence " involves detecting complicated quantum interference practice , which is inconceivable in standard quantum physics but should pass in quantum graveness , " Minic added .
incumbrance appears when waves , such as light or matter waves , overlap and either inflate or offset each other out , produce characteristic patterns . In conventional quantum mechanics , interference follows well - empathize pattern . However , some quantum gravity models intimate more complex interaction that go beyond these standard patterns . Detecting such effects in the science lab would be a groundbreaking trial of quantum soberness .
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In the meanwhile , the researchers are not wait for data-based confirmation . They are proceed to refine their understanding of quantum infinite - time , as well as exploring extra avenues for test their theory .
If substantiate , their finding would punctuate a major breakthrough not only in explaining dismal energy but also in providing the first tangible evidence for string theory — a long - sought end in fundamental physics .
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