Revolutionary Gravity Finding Moves Us Nearer To A Theory Of Everything

A novel approach to understanding gravity may help bridge the long-standing divide between gravity and quantum mechanics. Physicists Mikko Partanen and Jukka Tulkki from Aalto University in Finland have proposed a new perspective on gravity that they claim aligns with the Standard Model of particle physics, which explains the Universe’s other three fundamental forces: the strong, weak, and electromagnetic forces.

While it doesn’t yet amount to a full theory of quantum gravity, it could be an important step in that direction.

“If this ultimately leads to a comprehensive quantum field theory of gravity, it could one day provide solutions to complex problems like black holes singularity and the origins of the Big Bang“ Partanen says.

The Elusive Quest for a Unified Theory

A unified framework that explains all the fundamental forces in nature is often referred to as the Theory of Everything. Several fundamental questions in physics remain unresolved—for instance, current models still can’t explain why the observable Universe contains more matter than antimatter.

Gravity remains the biggest obstacle to forming a clear and unified understanding of how the Universe works. As the fourth and weakest fundamental force, it doesn’t integrate smoothly with the other three. Quantum theory effectively explains the behavior of matter at extremely small scales—like atoms and subatomic particles—but falls short at larger scales, where gravity becomes dominant.

On the other hand, classical physics and general relativity accurately describe gravity on cosmic scales but fail to account for quantum phenomena. Despite their incompatibility, both frameworks successfully describe aspects of the Universe, suggesting to scientists that a deeper unifying theory must exist to reconcile the two.

Gradual Progress Toward a Unified Theory

Given how difficult the problem is, it’s unlikely to solve in one breakthrough; instead, progress will probably unfold through a series of gradual but meaningful advances. One such step, taken by Partanen and Tulkki explains, involves framing gravity within the concept of a gauge—a fundamental idea in quantum field theory used to describe how particles behave within a given field.

An electromagnetic field is a common example of a gauge field—and the same applies to a gravitational field.

“The electromagnetic field is the most well-known gauge field,” Tulkki explains. “When electrically charged particles interact, they do so through this field, which serves as the corresponding gauge.”

“In a similar way, when particles possess energy, their interactions—by virtue of that energy—occur via the gravitational field.”

Integrating Gravity with the Standard Model

The Standard Model is a gauge theory that characterizes the strong, weak, and electromagnetic interactions and is defined by particular symmetries. To align gravity theory more closely with the Standard Model, Partanen and Tulkki aimed to incorporate these symmetries into a gauge-based framework for gravity. Their published findings appear encouraging.

“Our framework brings gravity’s gauge theory into closer alignment with the gauge theories in the Standard Model than traditional gravity gauge approaches,” the authors note in their paper.

While this work is still far from achieving a complete theory of quantum gravity, it offers a promising path forward that could play a key role in addressing one of physics’ most challenging questions.

With that in mind, Partanen and Tulkki encourage other researchers to contribute to the ongoing development of the theory. The current paper establishes a solid foundation, but advancing it further will demand significant theoretical work and rigorous testing.

“A comprehensive understanding of how unified gravity affects field theories,” the authors emphasize, “will only emerge through extensive future research.”

Read the original article on: Sciencealert

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