arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Burra G. Sidharth.
We argue that a non commutative geometry at the Compton scale is at the root of mass, Quantum Mechanical spin and QCD and electromagnetic interactions. It also leads to a reconciliation of linearized General Relativity and Quantum Theory.
The Planck scale is considered to be a natural minimum scale, made up as it is solely of fundamental constants. However the Planck scale is well beyond the scales encountered in real life, these latter being at least of the order of the Compton scale. The Compton scale too is fundamental in the same sense -- it is made up of fundamental micro physical constants, though it is $10^{20}$ orders higher than the Planck scale. We discuss here a mechanism by which the Planck scale manifests itself at the real life Compton scale, this happening due to processes within the Planck time. Related issues are also discussed.
De Broglie believed that the photon has a mass, a view shared by a few others. Quite recently, the author has argued that the photon has a mass which is consistent with the latest experimental limits. In the present paper we point out that there is experimental evidence for this mass and also give a theoretical demonstration of the photon mass.
We provide a rationale for the Planck scale being the minimum scale in the universe, as also its specific numerical values. In the process we answer the question of why the Planck scale is $10^{20}$ times the Compton scale of elementary particles. These considerations show how the Planck scale provides an underpinning for space time.
We show a strong parallel between the Hawking, Beckenstein black hole Thermodynamics and electromagnetism: When the gravitational coupling constant transform into the electromagnetic coupling constant, the Schwarzchild radius, the Beckenstein temperature, the Beckenstein decay time and the Planck mass transform to respectively the Compton wavelength, the Hagedorn temperature, the Compton time and a typical elementary particle mass. The reasons underlying this parallalism are then discussed in detail.
Much of the twentieth century physics has considered rigid laws-- even Quantum Mechanics and Statistical Mechanics were based on such laws. These laws operated in a smooth spacetime manifold. However more recent approaches as in Quantum Gravity schemes or Quantum Super String theory deal with a non differentiable spacetime manifold. With this we have to consider the new paradigm of Dark Energy of Zero Point Field. The picture that now emerges is that of a universe that is ``Thermodynamic''. We investigate how this can explain phenomenon like the velocity of light and also provide tests for experimental verification.
The concept of an all pervading Aether is age old, and contrary to popular belief, it survived the twentieth century too though with different nuances. Using this concept of a background Quantum Vacuum, the author in 1997 proposed a cosmological model with some resemblance to the Dirac cosmology, which correctly predicted a dark energy driven accelerating universer with a small cosmological constant, as was subsequently confirmed by observation in 1998. Moreover the so called Large Number coincidences including the mysterious Weinberg formula are deduced in this theory, rather than being ad hoc. We examine the concept of Aether in this context and indicate how this dark energy may be harnessed.