The Building Blocks of the Universe

宇宙的基石

• 批准号: SAPIN-2015-00046
• 负责人: Frey, Andrew
• 金额: $ 2.91万
• 依托单位: University of Winnipeg
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Subatomic Physics Envelope - Individual
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2016-01-01 至 2017-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=614397
• 关键词: Building; Blocks; Universe

My research investigates the main building blocks of the universe and the structure of space-time itself using tools from particle physics and string theory. The majority of my research aims to discover the composition of the modern universe, specifically uncovering the nature of dark matter, yet-to-be-discovered particles known only by their influence on gravity. We are in an era of rapid discovery, with multiple experiments to detect dark matter and highly sensitive astrophysical observatories now active. I am especially interested in anomalies in astroparticle physics which may be caused by dark matter and therefore give us insight into dark matter's underlying nature. I also discern the possible impact of these models for terrestrial detection experiments and even potential discoveries of new physics at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, keeping Canada at the forefront of this exciting research area. The other theme of my research program is answering fundamental questions regarding dark energy, which is responsible for the accelerated expansion of our universe, and more broadly about the structure of space-time in quantum gravity. I work in the context of string theory, the only known theory unifying particle physics with gravity. Specifically, I study the potential energy that stabilizes the size and shape of extra dimensions in string theory. Using quantum mechanical and uniquely stringy ingredients, I will build the explicit extra-dimensional model within string theory with a four-dimensional cosmological constant. But the origin of dark energy is not its only mystery; many scientists have suggested that understanding the magnitude of dark energy may require insights about the ultimate nature of quantum gravity. Therefore, I will also study the formation of black holes in string theory with a negative cosmological constant. This work may offer hints about the behavior of space-time in quantum gravity, and it will demonstrate the interplay between different aspects of gravity, including the cosmological constant. Most of the content of the universe -- dark matter and dark energy -- remain mysterious. My research puts Canada in a leading role uncovering the nature of these building blocks of the universe.

我的研究调查宇宙的主要组成部分和时空本身的结构使用粒子物理学和弦理论的工具。我的大部分研究旨在发现现代宇宙的组成，特别是揭示暗物质的性质，这些尚未被发现的粒子只知道它们对引力的影响。我们正处于一个快速发现的时代，有多个探测暗物质的实验和高灵敏度的天体物理观测站正在运行。我对天体粒子物理学中可能由暗物质引起的异常现象特别感兴趣，因此可以让我们深入了解暗物质的基本性质。我还发现了这些模型对地球探测实验的可能影响，甚至可能在欧洲核子研究中心的大型强子对撞机上发现新的物理学，使加拿大保持在这一令人兴奋的研究领域的最前沿。 我的研究计划的另一个主题是回答有关暗能量的基本问题，暗能量是宇宙加速膨胀的原因，更广泛地说，是量子引力中的时空结构。我研究的是弦理论，这是唯一一个将粒子物理学与引力统一起来的理论。具体来说，我研究的是稳定弦论中额外维度的大小和形状的势能。利用量子力学和独特的弦成分，我将用四维宇宙学常数在弦理论中建立明确的额外维度模型。但暗能量的起源并不是它唯一的谜团;许多科学家认为，要理解暗能量的大小，可能需要对量子引力的终极性质有深入的了解。因此，我也将研究具有负宇宙学常数的弦理论中黑洞的形成。这项工作可能会提供有关量子引力中时空行为的线索，并将展示引力不同方面之间的相互作用，包括宇宙学常数。 宇宙的大部分内容--暗物质和暗能量--仍然是神秘的。我的研究使加拿大在揭示宇宙这些组成部分的性质方面发挥了主导作用。