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This could open an entirely new field of study.
A black
hole, protons, and quantum entanglement walk into a bar.
According
to a recent study published in the European Physical Journal C, the recent
revelation that portions of a proton's interior exhibit maximal quantum
entanglement — a finding that, paradoxically, could point to another, much
larger thermodynamic object: black holes.
While no
one is talking about a literal black hole hidden inside a proton (that would be
absurd), finding similar physics on such a small scale represents a rare
overlap in the way we describe the physical universe, where theories about
extremely large things also describe hidden features of unspeakably small
things.
Protons, quantum entanglement, and black holes all walk into a pub.
According
to the study, many fragments inside protons must be maximally entangled with
one another; if this isn't the case, theoretical predictions won't match facts
from experiments. The scientists can propose that, contrary to popular belief,
the physics going on inside protons may have a lot in common with entropy or
temperature using the model presented by the theory.
And when
dealing with unusual things like black holes, these processes are amplified.
This
research was led by two theorists: Krzysztof Kutak of the Polish Academy of
Sciences' Institute of Nuclear Physics (IFJ PAN) in Cracow, Poland, and Martin
Hentschinski of Mexico's Universidad de las Americas Puebla.
Together,
they tested a scenario in which protons are bombarded with electrons. When a
negatively charged electron approaches a positively charged proton, the two
will interact, with the latter diverting the former into a different route.
When a
photon is exchanged between a proton and an electron, the greater the
interaction between the two particles, the higher the change in momentum of the
photon, which reduces the time of the electromagnetic wave.
Incorporating entropy into proton physics denotes the existence of black holes
In a Report, Kutak stated, "If a photon is'short' enough to [fit] inside a proton, it begins to'resolve' features of its internal structure." "The proton may decay into particles as a result of colliding with this type of photon. We've demonstrated that the two scenarios are intertwined. The number of particles originating from the unobserved section of the proton is determined by the number of particles seen in the observed part of the proton if the photon observes the interior part of the proton and it decays into a number of particles, say three."
There's a
lot more to the research procedure, but scientists have been able to measure
the degree of disordered motion among particles in an analysed system thanks to
a recent trend among quantum physicists of linking entropy with the internal
state of a proton — via a well-known concept of classical thermodynamics. This
disorderly state provides systems a high entropy value, whereas order has a low
entropy value.
And,
according to recent results, this is how things are within the proton, allowing
physicists to explain entanglement entropy in that environment. However, many
physicists are adamant that protons are pure quantum states in and of
themselves, implying that we can't characterise them using entropy. And the new
research is a huge step forward in bringing the entanglement concept to the
forefront for the proton. This applies to a variety of topics, including the
surface area of a black hole. And this marks the start of a new and intriguing
sector in desperate need of research.
Reference:
Hentschinski, M., Kutak, K. Evidence for the maximally entangled low x proton in Deep Inelastic Scattering from H1 data. Eur. Phys. J. C 82, 111 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1140/epjc/s10052-022-10056-y
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