Physicists Discover a New Approach for Solving the Bizarre Dark Energy Mystery - SciTechDaily

What is down acheronian vigor — and what connects it to the cosmological changeless introduced by Albert Einstein? Two physicists from the University of Luxembourg constituent the mode to answering these unfastened questions of physics.

The beingness has a fig of bizarre properties that are hard to recognize with mundane experience. For example, the substance we know, consisting of simple and composite particles gathering molecules and materials, seemingly makes up lone a tiny portion of the vigor of the universe. The largest contribution, astir two-thirds, comes from “dark energy” – a hypothetical signifier of vigor whose inheritance physicists are inactive puzzling over. Moreover, the beingness is not lone expanding steadily, but besides doing truthful astatine an ever-faster pace.

Both characteristics look to beryllium connected, due to the fact that dark energy is besides considered a operator of accelerated expansion. Moreover, it could reunite 2 almighty carnal schools of thought: quantum tract mentation and the wide mentation of relativity developed by Albert Einstein. But determination is simply a catch: calculations and observations person truthful acold been acold from matching. Now 2 researchers from Luxembourg person shown a caller mode to lick this 100-year-old riddle successful a insubstantial published by the diary Physical Review Letters.

The way of virtual particles successful a vacuum

“Vacuum has energy. This is simply a cardinal effect of quantum tract theory,” explains Prof. Alexandre Tkatchenko, Professor of Theoretical Physics astatine the Department of Physics and Materials Science astatine the University of Luxembourg. This mentation was developed to bring unneurotic quantum mechanics and peculiar relativity, but quantum tract mentation seems to beryllium incompatible with wide relativity. Its indispensable feature: successful opposition to quantum mechanics, the mentation considers not lone particles but besides matter-free fields arsenic quantum objects.

“In this framework, galore researchers respect acheronian vigor arsenic an look of the alleged vacuum energy,” says Tkatchenko: a carnal quantity that, successful a vivid image, is caused by a changeless emergence and enactment of pairs of particles and their antiparticles — specified arsenic electrons and positrons — successful what is really bare space.

Physicists talk of this coming and going of virtual particles and their quantum fields arsenic vacuum oregon zero-point fluctuations. While the particle pairs rapidly vanish into nothingness again, their beingness leaves down a definite magnitude of energy.

“This vacuum vigor besides has a meaning successful wide relativity,” the Luxembourg idiosyncratic notes: “It manifests itself successful the cosmological changeless Einstein included into his equations for carnal reasons.”

A colossal mismatch

Unlike vacuum energy, which tin lone beryllium deduced from the formulae of quantum tract theory, the cosmological changeless tin beryllium determined straight by astrophysical experiments. Measurements with the Hubble abstraction scope and the Planck abstraction ngo person yielded adjacent and reliable values for the cardinal carnal quantity. Calculations of acheronian vigor connected the ground of quantum tract theory, connected the different hand, output results that correspond to a worth of the cosmological changeless that is up to 10¹²⁰ times larger – a colossal discrepancy, though successful the satellite presumption of physicists prevailing today, some values should beryllium equal. The discrepancy recovered alternatively is known arsenic the “cosmological changeless enigma.”

“It is undoubtedly 1 of the top inconsistencies successful modern science,” says Alexandre Tkatchenko.

Unconventional mode of interpretation

Together with his Luxembourg probe workfellow Dr. Dmitry Fedorov, helium has present brought the solution to this puzzle, which has been unfastened for decades, a important measurement closer. In a theoretical work, the results of which they precocious published successful Physical Review Letters, the 2 Luxembourg researchers suggest a caller mentation of acheronian energy. It assumes that the zero-point fluctuations pb to a polarizability of the vacuum, which tin beryllium some measured and calculated.

“In pairs of virtual particles with an other electrical charge, it arises from electrodynamic forces that these particles exert connected each different during their highly abbreviated existence,” Tkatchenko explains. The physicists notation to this arsenic a vacuum self-interaction. “It leads to an vigor density that tin beryllium determined with the assistance of a caller model,” says the Luxembourg scientist.

Together with his probe workfellow Fedorov, they developed the basal exemplary for atoms a fewer years agone and presented it for the archetypal clip successful 2018. The exemplary was primitively utilized to picture atomic properties, successful peculiar the narration betwixt polarizability of atoms and the equilibrium properties of definite non-covalently bonded molecules and solids. Since the geometric characteristics are rather casual to measurement experimentally, polarizability tin besides beryllium determined via their formula.

“We transferred this process to the processes successful the vacuum,” explains Fedorov. To this end, the 2 researchers looked astatine the behaviour of quantum fields, successful peculiar representing the “coming and going” of electrons and positrons. The fluctuations of these fields tin besides beryllium characterized by an equilibrium geometry which is already known from experiments. “We inserted it into the formulas of our exemplary and successful this mode yet obtained the spot of the intrinsic vacuum polarization,” Fedorov reports.

The past measurement was past to quantum mechanically cipher the vigor density of the self-interaction betwixt fluctuations of electrons and positrons. The effect obtained successful this mode agrees good with the measured values for the cosmological constant. This means: “Dark vigor tin beryllium traced backmost to the vigor density of the self-interaction of quantum fields,” emphasizes Alexandre Tkatchenko.

Consistent values and verifiable forecasts

“Our enactment frankincense offers an elegant and unconventional attack to solving the riddle of the cosmological constant,” sums up the physicist. “Moreover, it provides a verifiable prediction: namely, that quantum fields specified arsenic those of electrons and positrons bash so person a tiny but ever-present intrinsic polarization.”

This uncovering points the mode for aboriginal experiments to observe this polarization successful the laboratory arsenic well, accidental the 2 Luxembourg researchers. “Our extremity is to deduce the cosmological changeless from a rigorous quantum theoretical approach,” emphasizes Dmitry Fedorov. “And our enactment contains a look connected however to recognize this.”

He sees the caller results obtained unneurotic with Alexandre Tkatchenko arsenic the archetypal measurement toward a amended knowing of acheronian vigor — and its transportation to Albert Einstein’s cosmological constant.

Finally, Tkatchenko is convinced: “In the end, this could besides shed airy connected the mode successful which quantum tract mentation and wide relativity mentation are interwoven arsenic 2 ways of looking astatine the beingness and its components.”

Reference: “Casimir Self-Interaction Energy Density of Quantum Electrodynamic Fields” by Alexandre Tkatchenko and Dmitry V. Fedorov, 24 January 2023, Physical Review Letters.
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.130.041601