What is the universe composed of?

 From the minuscule to the monumental, from the terrestrial to the celestial, from us to the potential life forms on distant planets, what is the universe composed of? 

At first glance, the answer seems straightforward: the universe is a dance of matter and energy, with energy influencing matter in all its forms, dictating its motion and behavior.

But what is matter, and more pertinently, what is energy? Matter is the substance and essence of things; it is what we perceive, experience, and interact with in our daily existence, including our own bodies. Energy manifests in various forms such as heat, electricity, wind power, tidal power, and gravitational force. These forces and others enable us to manipulate matter in all its manifestations.

Let’s delve deeper: what constitutes matter, and how does it differ from energy? What happens if we continue to dissect matter into smaller parts? Will we reach a final particle beyond which matter can no longer be divided? Is energy also composed of these minute particles of matter? Are matter and energy two facets of the same entity, as suggested by Einstein’s famous equation that quantitatively links them, allowing one to be transformed into the other?

Before we proceed, we must question: why should we be so intrigued by the constituents of the universe, and is the rigorous research in this field worth all the resources and efforts that have been and continue to be expended?

In essence, knowledge is power. If we could comprehend and control the intricate details upon which the universe is built, we might be able to accomplish what is currently deemed miraculous: for instance, journeying to other habitable planets, a future inevitability currently deemed impossible due to the vast distances separating us from the nearest ones. Scientists suggest that space is composed of fundamental blocks known as Geons, characterized by wormholes.

Wormholes could potentially facilitate rapid travel to distant planets, enabling us to colonize new worlds for the benefit of humankind.

Moreover, if we could control the production of so-called anti-matter, the paired counterpart of known matter that annihilates upon contact, producing a massive amount of clean, pure energy, we would have a sustainable green energy source.

Today’s fantasy becomes tomorrow’s reality. Recall that scientists have long aspired to decode the genetic makeup of living cells and modify it to eradicate genetic diseases and enhance biological life forms. This dream, once considered ludicrous, has now become a reality. Indeed, scientific progress has faced numerous hurdles over the centuries, but today this painstaking progress has yielded unimaginable applications and results across all knowledge domains.

The world of atomic particles presents anomalies that contradict our physical laws. This world is filled with wonders, where the possible and impossible coexist.

Take the electron, for instance. As a particle, it is dispersed along certain orbits or energy levels surrounding the atom’s nucleus, implying it exists at all points on the associated energy level simultaneously. The impossibility of determining its exact location at any given moment motivated scientists to probe the depths of the atom and closely identify its components to explain these anomalies. Research based on the traditional atomic model led to the emergence of a new science, Quantum Mechanics, which studies the nature of particles that make up the atomic structure. Research has revealed the possibility of breaking down atomic particles considered elementary, such as protons and neutrons, into finer particles.

The primary method used to explore the fascinating world of the atom involves directing some fast and active particles towards others, allowing them to collide, and then observing and analyzing the results of that collision in detail. Such studies necessitate specialized and complex techniques and means.

A micro particle accelerator is needed to produce high-speed particles, and detectors are required to observe the outcomes of the collision. The principle behind the detector is based on the observation that charged particles leave a measurable trace after moving through certain media. By examining and analysing this trace, we can determine the speed and mass of the tiny particle and thus identify it. Scientists examine nearly a million images for a single experiment, generating a substantial amount of data that needs to be sorted and processed. By understanding the mass and electrical charge of these particles, as well as the quantity of particles released in a specific direction, scientists can use these experiments to identify the types of particles that emanate from the most atomic components. In other words, when these effects are properly understood, physicists can explain how matter behaves and even some specifics of how different types of matter interact.

 In the pursuit of unraveling the mysteries of atomic particles, the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) constructed the world’s most formidable particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider. This monumental achievement enabled the artificial production of numerous atomic particles, previously unknown to science.

The collider, a subterranean marvel stretching 27 kilometers in length and situated 175 meters beneath the earth’s surface, straddles the border between Switzerland and France. Its construction, spanning a decade from 1998 to 2008, was a collaborative effort involving tens of thousands of scientists and engineers from over a hundred countries, with an expenditure nearing ten billion dollars to date.

The operational principle of the collider hinges on the collision of two proton beams, each traveling at velocities approaching the speed of light, at a chilling temperature of minus 271 degrees Celsius. This extreme cold is necessary to manage the immense heat generated by the collision.

Experiments in the realm of atomic particles universally share two objectives:

● The first is to discern the constituents of atomic particles, that is, the finer elements of protons, neutrons, and electrons.

● The second is to comprehend the nature of the forces that govern the interactions between these particles, leading to their amalgamation.

Regarding the latter objective, we currently recognize four models of forces operative in the Universe:

1.    Gravitational forces, perceptible in our everyday world, are proportional to the mass of tangible objects such as rocks, mountains, planets, and stars. Despite being the feeblest of the four known forces, gravity’s influence extends far into the cosmos.

2.    Electromagnetic forces, associated with light and radio waves, have a far-reaching effect and are significantly more potent than gravity.

3.    Strong forces are responsible for the fusion of protons and neutrons within the atom. This atomic force surpasses the combined strength of the other three forces, but its influence is confined to the atomic scale.

4.    Weak forces, accountable for certain radioactive phenomena resulting from atomic disintegration, exist solely within the atom. These forces are stronger than gravity but weaker than the other two forces.

 

The close of the twentieth century bore witness to a groundbreaking discovery: all forces, with the exception of gravity, possess a materialistic nature. They, akin to atomic particles, engender what we perceive as force. This theory was substantiated by the identification of particles responsible for electromagnetic, strong nuclear, and weak nuclear forces.

This revelation brought scientists tantalizingly close to realizing Einstein’s dream of a unified field theory. Einstein postulated that all natural forces share an intrinsic nature when subjected to extreme conditions akin to those of the Big Bang, the theorized inception of the Universe.

In the 1970s, physicists formulated a set of equations describing these particles and their interactions, premised on the notion that nature originates from a select few components. These equations coalesced to form what is now recognized as the Standard Model of particle physics.

Excluding gravity, the Standard Model encompasses all elements constituting the Universe.

Through meticulous experimentation, it was revealed that the atom, once deemed the smallest unit of matter, is a microcosm in itself, composed of even smaller constituents: protons, neutrons, and electrons. These components, previously considered elementary, are composed of even finer particles known as quarks and leptons, each carrying distinct types of charges.

The Higgs field imparts physical mass to quarks and leptons. The forces binding these particles are conveyed via physical messengers known as bosons. These bosons exhibit distinct characteristics: the gluon is the messenger of the strong force between atomic particles, the photon conveys electromagnetic forces, and the W and Z bosons transmit the weak force. The gravitation, presumed to be the particle transmitting gravity, remains elusive to discovery.

The Standard Model posits that our physical world, in all its diverse manifestations, is fundamentally composed of elementary particles known as fermions. These fermions are further categorized into two groups: quarks and leptons. Each group comprises three pairs or generations of particles, arranged in ascending order of mass. The most stable particles, those resistant to radioactive decay, belong to the first generation (u, d), with instability increasing as we ascend to the second and third generations.

The Standard Model has proven successful in elucidating and predicting a multitude of experimental phenomena, earning it a trusted position in the realm of atomic particle physics. However, it notably lacks the inclusion of particles hypothesized to constitute dark matter, those responsible for transmitting gravity, and an explanation for the mass of neutrinos. Despite these omissions, the Standard Model provides an impressively accurate representation of nearly all other observed phenomena.

The universal theme of gravity remains a subject of Einstein’s general and special theories of relativity. Consequently, our understanding of the Universe is bifurcated into two distinct realms, each governed by its own set of laws: the chaotic world of the atom, addressed by quantum mechanics, and the physical, sensible world, governed by a creative order and the laws of physics.

This dichotomy presents a formidable challenge to natural scientists: to comprehend the laws of the Universe in their entirety through a single theory that encapsulates the minutiae of the atomic world as well as the laws governing the vast galactic clusters that span the sky. This challenge stems from the fundamental belief that the Universe, in all its macroscopic and microscopic detail, is a singular entity that cannot be subject to disparate laws.

The sacred Quran, in its infinite wisdom, elucidates the minuscule essence of matter within the lyrical cadence of verse 3, Surah 34. This verse serves as a divine testament to the infinitesimal constituents of our physical reality:

“God, the Omniscient Seer of the unseen, holds in His divine knowledge the weight of even the smallest atom within the vast expanse of the heavens or the depths of the earth. Nothing exists, be it smaller or larger than an atom, that escapes His all-encompassing awareness. Every detail, minute or grand, is meticulously recorded in a transparent register.”