The mysterious substance called dark matter may actually be an illusion created by gravitational interactions between fleeting particles of matter and antimatter, a new study.
Dark matter is thought to be an invisible substance which constitutes almost a quarter of the mass of the universe. The concept was first proposed in 1933 to explain why galaxies, clusters of galaxies in orbit more quickly than they should, based on the mass of the visible galaxies'.
The velocities of the galaxies observed outside should be thrown out into space, because the grapes do not seem to have enough mass to keep the edges of galaxies gravitationally bound.
So physicists suggested that galaxies are surrounded by a halo of invisible matter. Dark matter provides the extra mass, which in turn creates gravitational fields strong enough to hold clusters together.
In the new study, physicists Dragan Hajdukovic is the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Switzerland to offer an alternative explanation, based on what he calls the "gravitational polarization of the quantum vacuum."
Dark matter is thought to be an invisible substance which constitutes almost a quarter of the mass of the universe. The concept was first proposed in 1933 to explain why galaxies, clusters of galaxies in orbit more quickly than they should, based on the mass of the visible galaxies'.
The velocities of the galaxies observed outside should be thrown out into space, because the grapes do not seem to have enough mass to keep the edges of galaxies gravitationally bound.
So physicists suggested that galaxies are surrounded by a halo of invisible matter. Dark matter provides the extra mass, which in turn creates gravitational fields strong enough to hold clusters together.
In the new study, physicists Dragan Hajdukovic is the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Switzerland to offer an alternative explanation, based on what he calls the "gravitational polarization of the quantum vacuum."
The empty space filled with "virtual" particles
The quantum vacuum is the name physicists give what we see as empty space.
According to quantum physics, the vacuum is not really sterile, but a boiling sea of so-called virtual particles and antiparticles constantly in and out of existence.
Antimatter particles have the opposite mirror image of normal matter particles. For example, a negatively charged antiproton is a version of the positively charged proton, a basic constituent of atoms.
When matter and antimatter meet, they annihilate in a flash of energy. Virtual particles spontaneously created in the quantum vacuum appears and disappears as fast as they can not be observed directly.
In his new mathematical model, Hajdukovic studied what would happen if matter and antimatter virtual virtual opposites not only electricity but also opposed an idea of some previously proposed physical gravity.
"The traditional physics assumes that there is a single charge of gravity, while I assumed that there are two gravitational charges" Hajdukovic said.
According to him the idea, outlined in the journal Astrophysics and Space Science course, this is a positive charge and a negative anti-matter gravity.
This would mean that matter and antimatter is gravitationally repulsive, so the object made of antimatter would "fall up" in the Earth's gravitational field, which is composed of normal matter.
Particles and antiparticles could still face, but since the gravitational repulsion is much weaker than the electrical attraction.
How to Increase the galaxies have serious
While the idea of a particle of gravity may seem exotic, Hajdukovic says his theory is based on the established tenants of quantum physics.
For example, it has long been known that particles can come together to create a so-called electric dipole with a positively charged particles at one end and negatively charged particles in the other. (See "existence Universe can be explained by new materials.")
According to theory, there are countless electric dipoles created by the virtual particles in a given volume of the quantum vacuum.
All of these electric dipoles are randomly oriented, like countless points of the compass needle in every way imaginable. But if the dipoles formed in the presence of an electric field exists, they immediately adjust along the same direction as the field.
According to quantum field theory, the sudden blow in the order of electric dipoles, called polarization, generates a high electric field, which combines and strengthens the first field.
Hajdukovic suggests that a similar phenomenon occurs with gravity. If the virtual matter and antimatter particles have different gravity, while the randomly oriented dipoles are generated in space.
If these gravitational dipoles form a massive galaxy that the article would have been a strong gravitational field, a dipole is polarized.
This polarization will generate a gravitational field of the secondary, which will combine with and strengthen the gravitational field of the galaxy.
"My theory makes the gravitational field of the galaxy, and powerful, without dark matter," said Hajdukovic.
Evidence of Dark Matter "very impressive"
Physicist David Evans has called the new study "an interesting theoretical exercise," but said he is not ready to abandon dark matter yet.
"The evidence for dark matter is very convincing," said Evans, University of Birmingham, who led the British team for the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN.
For example, unveiled in 2006, astronomers have an image of two colliding galaxies known as the Bullet cluster, which would have shown that the separation of the material of the dark matter.
A similar effect was observed at the beginning of the Pandora team this summer, says Evans, who was not involved in the study.
Hajdukovic said he is expanding his theory account of comments. His preliminary calculations, he said, that "what has been observed Bullet Cluster, and more recently the group Pandora can be understood as part of the gravitational polarization of the quantum vacuum."
Michael Doser at CERN physicists have agreed that the thoughts Hajdukovic are "unusual", but not immediately reject the new theory.
"The general perception is suffering from the absence of a dark matter particle is detected, then explore a variety of options right now perfectly legitimate as long as they are compatible with all the data," Dose said in an e -mail.
Doses are a member of AEGIS experiment at CERN aims to measure the gravitational load of antihydrogen, the antimatter version of hydrogen, and therefore would show whether the matter and antimatter is gravitationally repulsive.
"In a few years," Doser said, "we should certainly be able to confirm or refute the hypothesis [of Hajdukovic]."
The quantum vacuum is the name physicists give what we see as empty space.
According to quantum physics, the vacuum is not really sterile, but a boiling sea of so-called virtual particles and antiparticles constantly in and out of existence.
Antimatter particles have the opposite mirror image of normal matter particles. For example, a negatively charged antiproton is a version of the positively charged proton, a basic constituent of atoms.
When matter and antimatter meet, they annihilate in a flash of energy. Virtual particles spontaneously created in the quantum vacuum appears and disappears as fast as they can not be observed directly.
In his new mathematical model, Hajdukovic studied what would happen if matter and antimatter virtual virtual opposites not only electricity but also opposed an idea of some previously proposed physical gravity.
"The traditional physics assumes that there is a single charge of gravity, while I assumed that there are two gravitational charges" Hajdukovic said.
According to him the idea, outlined in the journal Astrophysics and Space Science course, this is a positive charge and a negative anti-matter gravity.
This would mean that matter and antimatter is gravitationally repulsive, so the object made of antimatter would "fall up" in the Earth's gravitational field, which is composed of normal matter.
Particles and antiparticles could still face, but since the gravitational repulsion is much weaker than the electrical attraction.
How to Increase the galaxies have serious
While the idea of a particle of gravity may seem exotic, Hajdukovic says his theory is based on the established tenants of quantum physics.
For example, it has long been known that particles can come together to create a so-called electric dipole with a positively charged particles at one end and negatively charged particles in the other. (See "existence Universe can be explained by new materials.")
According to theory, there are countless electric dipoles created by the virtual particles in a given volume of the quantum vacuum.
All of these electric dipoles are randomly oriented, like countless points of the compass needle in every way imaginable. But if the dipoles formed in the presence of an electric field exists, they immediately adjust along the same direction as the field.
According to quantum field theory, the sudden blow in the order of electric dipoles, called polarization, generates a high electric field, which combines and strengthens the first field.
Hajdukovic suggests that a similar phenomenon occurs with gravity. If the virtual matter and antimatter particles have different gravity, while the randomly oriented dipoles are generated in space.
If these gravitational dipoles form a massive galaxy that the article would have been a strong gravitational field, a dipole is polarized.
This polarization will generate a gravitational field of the secondary, which will combine with and strengthen the gravitational field of the galaxy.
"My theory makes the gravitational field of the galaxy, and powerful, without dark matter," said Hajdukovic.
Evidence of Dark Matter "very impressive"
Physicist David Evans has called the new study "an interesting theoretical exercise," but said he is not ready to abandon dark matter yet.
"The evidence for dark matter is very convincing," said Evans, University of Birmingham, who led the British team for the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN.
For example, unveiled in 2006, astronomers have an image of two colliding galaxies known as the Bullet cluster, which would have shown that the separation of the material of the dark matter.
A similar effect was observed at the beginning of the Pandora team this summer, says Evans, who was not involved in the study.
Hajdukovic said he is expanding his theory account of comments. His preliminary calculations, he said, that "what has been observed Bullet Cluster, and more recently the group Pandora can be understood as part of the gravitational polarization of the quantum vacuum."
Michael Doser at CERN physicists have agreed that the thoughts Hajdukovic are "unusual", but not immediately reject the new theory.
"The general perception is suffering from the absence of a dark matter particle is detected, then explore a variety of options right now perfectly legitimate as long as they are compatible with all the data," Dose said in an e -mail.
Doses are a member of AEGIS experiment at CERN aims to measure the gravitational load of antihydrogen, the antimatter version of hydrogen, and therefore would show whether the matter and antimatter is gravitationally repulsive.
"In a few years," Doser said, "we should certainly be able to confirm or refute the hypothesis [of Hajdukovic]."
Join The Community