Chuck Bednar for redOrbit.com – @BednarChuck
Finding a way to explain exactly what dark matter and dark energy are, while also finding a way to reconcile quantum theory and general relativity, has long been a struggle for physicists, but a new study may have found a way to provide a satisfactory solution to these mysteries.
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Writing in the International Journal of Geometric Methods in Modern Physics, Stuart Marongwe of the McConnell College Physics Department in Botswana has reportedly come up with a self-consistent theory of quantum gravity that explains the dark sector while still being in agreement with existing observations.
Nexus graviton
Marongwe proposes a theory known as Nexus in that it provides a link between quantum theory and general relativity in the form of the Nexus graviton.
This phenomenon is a composite spin 2 particle of space-time which emerges naturally from the unification process, and one unique feature of the Nexus graviton which distinguishes it from the graviton hypothesized in the Standard Model is that it is not a messenger particle. Actually, it causes constant rotational motion on any test particle that is embedded inside of it.
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Furthermore, the Nexus graviton can also be considered as a globule of vacuum energy that is capable of merging and separating from others in a process not unlike that of cytokineses in cell biology. The Nexus graviton is dark matter and constitutes space-time.
The emission of a graviton of least energy by a higher-energy one results in the expansion of the high-energy graviton as it takes on a lower-energy state, Marongwe explained – a process which takes place throughout space-time and manifests as dark energy, based on the theory.
The Schwarzschild approach
Marongwe refers to this as “the Schwarzschild approach” in his paper, adding that it “is applied to solve the field equations describing a Nexus graviton field. The resulting solutions are free from singularities which have been a problem in general relativity since its inception.”
“Findings from this work also demonstrate that at the Hubble radius, the metric signature of space-time changes are generating short-lived but intense bursts of energy during the transition process,” he added. “The solutions in this paper also provide an explanation to the enigma of late time cosmic acceleration, the galaxy rotation curve problem and the coincidence problem.”
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His study helps provide new insight into some of the more puzzling issues in physics, including providing a quantum description of black holes without singularities inherent in the classical theory of general relativity. Marongwe believes that the methods used in his research and the solutions it provides will lead to new developments in the field of physics.
In January, scientists at the University of Southampton proposed a new fundamental particle that could help detect dark matter, which is believed to make up 85 percent of the universe’s mass. In contrast to the standard view that that dark matter has a very large mass, similar to those of heavy atoms, the researchers proposed the existence of low-mass dark matter particles.
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