Cosmological Understanding Mind-map - Have I Got it

[Serendipity]

I have in the past found understanding the issues about cosmological theory confusing. So I resorted to producing a mind-map of the issues surrounding the development of the cosmological theory of how our universe developed excluding the issues surrounding dark matter and dark energy (that's for another brain-dumping / brain-mashing session).

Would be grateful for the wise and knowledgeable of this forum, if you could comment on my draft as it currently stands and as shown below.

 

[AllanR]

1929 Hubble observed red shifts on distance objects, (blue) the theory from that is the universe is expanding (green)

 

[Biskit]

Not my area of expertise at all, but I recently came across this on magnetic monopoles...

New manifestation of magnetic monopoles discovered

The startling similarity between the physical laws describing electric phenomena and those describing magnetic phenomena has been known since the 19th century. However, one piece that would make the two perfectly symmetric was missing: magnetic monopoles. While magnetic monopoles in the form of...

phys.org

Magnetic monopoles discovered by LCN Scientists | London Nano

www.london-nano.com

 

[Serendipity]

Many thanks AllanR and Biskit. Have done the investigations where you people pointed me to, I've now slightly amended the diagram in the areas of concern. It now stands at:

 

[Foxbat]

I’ve never been able to fully grasp the need to discover magnetic monopoles. I know that it would add a perfect symmetry when compared with electricity but I still don’t get the big push.

Consider this: the monopole is seen as the magnetic equivelent to the electrical charge. Where there are both positive and negative charges in electricity, there are (so far) only bipolar magnets. It is argued that a magnetic field needs to be a closed loop but if you look at an electrical charge, it also needs to operate within a closed loop. If you have a bare electrical wire just hanging, let’s say, from a ceiling, nothing will happen until I come along and put my finger to it. Then, I get an electric shock only if my body allows the electricity to travel to earth through my body. Using my body, I have created a closed loop. So, in other words, electricity might exist but it cannot function without a closed loop (just like bipolar magnetism). Perhaps, like an electrical charge, monopoles are just dormant until a closed loop is provided (and then become bipolar by default).

Another thought, you could use a meter to detect the charge in a hanging wire but only, if you touch the second probe of the meter to earth (in other words, only by closing the loop can you detect electricity). Maybe the only way to detect magnetism is to close the loop (creating a bipolar setup) and that’s why it’s so difficult to find monopolar magnets?

I don’t know if this makes any sense but I’m quite prepared to be shot down in flames if somebody can explain this to me because maybe then I can grasp it.

 

[Serendipity]

I’ve never been able to fully grasp the need to discover magnetic monopoles. I know that it would add a perfect symmetry when compared with electricity but I still don’t get the big push.

Consider this: the monopole is seen as the magnetic equivelent to the electrical charge. Where there are both positive and negative charges in electricity, there are (so far) only bipolar magnets. It is argued that a magnetic field needs to be a closed loop but if you look at an electrical charge, it also needs to operate within a closed loop. If you have a bare electrical wire just hanging, let’s say, from a ceiling, nothing will happen until I come along and put my finger to it. Then, I get an electric shock only if my body allows the electricity to travel to earth through my body. Using my body, I have created a closed loop. So, in other words, electricity might exist but it cannot function without a closed loop (just like bipolar magnetism). Perhaps, like an electrical charge, monopoles are just dormant until a closed loop is provided (and then become bipolar by default).

Another thought, you could use a meter to detect the charge in a hanging wire but only, if you touch the second probe of the meter to earth (in other words, only by closing the loop can you detect electricity). Maybe the only way to detect magnetism is to close the loop (creating a bipolar setup) and that’s why it’s so difficult to find monopolar magnets?

I don’t know if this makes any sense but I’m quite prepared to be shot down in flames if somebody can explain this to me because maybe then I can grasp it.

Your magnetic monopoles query - the reason for the interest in magnetic monopoles density in our universe is that it would help confirm the inflation theory that follows shortly after the Big Bang theory, and indeed may even improve it, dependent on the results.

The real issue of finding magnetic monopoles is that Maxwell's Electromagnetic Equations would have to be amended. They are currently correct if there are no magnetic monopoles and can be used to where the magnetic monopoles' strength is so weak it makes no difference to the measured electromagnetic effects. The equation that changes of course is Gauss' Law for magnetism (the zero on one side of the differential equation goes from 0 to the strength of the sum of magnetic monopoles).

Regarding the detection of charge from a hanging wire - charges come in both positive and negative forms. If there is a negative charge free-dangling wire and a positive charge move towards but does establish contact, then the wire will feel the attraction of the positive charge.

Hope all this makes sense and helps.

 

[Foxbat]

It brings me to the point where I ask why monopoles are so significant in proving inflation theory (which I googled and found this...

Magnetic monopoles as engines for cosmological inflation

It appears (as I understand it) that monopoles are only important in as much as they would provide evidence of the once present super-heavy particles that would indicate inflation.

 

[Wayne Mack]

I’ve never been able to fully grasp the need to discover magnetic monopoles. I know that it would add a perfect symmetry when compared with electricity but I still don’t get the big push.

Lack of magnetic monopoles is a challenge to quantum theory. Without a monopole, magnetic particles are infinitely divisible.

 

[Serendipity]

Lack of magnetic monopoles is a challenge to quantum theory. Without a monopole, magnetic particles are infinitely divisible.

Apparently according to Paul Dirac, the existence of magnetic monopoles implies the quantisation of electric charges. Whilst it may be a sufficient condition, it is not necessary condition i.e. there may a different reason behind the quantisation of electric charges.

 

[Venusian Broon]

I’ve never been able to fully grasp the need to discover magnetic monopoles. I know that it would add a perfect symmetry when compared with electricity but I still don’t get the big push.

There are a number of theories beyond the standard model that predict magnetic monopoles, all of which give various ranges for mass and other quantities. Therefore any observation and its properties may tell us something about what lies beyond the standard model of particle physics.

(Unfortunately, I believe, the mass of the magentic monopole is so huge - 10^16 times the mass of a proton is a figure I seen been used - that it is impossible for us to produce in a collider and is they are so rare it is highly unlikely to be detected in passing by us - although that has not stopped attempts!)

Also, there are a number of theories on what happened before inflation that are used to try to explain why the universe started with low entropy. say for example, Holographic Cosmology (this is to do with the universe being a sea of black holes before inflation, a theory developed by Thomas Banks and Willy Fischer, not the Holographic Principle developed by Susskind and Hooft which is a different beast), Brane theory or Dark Shatter theory.

Many believe that magnetic monopoles, should have been created during the very start of the big bang, given what flavour of speculative theory you are using. And therefore would have been absorbed by the first black holes that may still exist today - relic primordial black holes - and monopoles being massive particles would be tend to be resisted to be ejected as Hawking radiation. (Yes, primordial black holes are a thing that has not been observed yet also...).

The above three theories mentioned have various proportions of black holes, monopoles and other things, so an actual observation of a relic black hole with monopoles in it may provide evidence for one approach over another.

TL;DR Observation of magnetic monopoles may give evidence of what lies beyond the standard models of cosmology and particle physics.

 

[Foxbat]

That helps....I think

 

[Venusian Broon]

That helps....I think

Sorry , I have a personal wiki where I have collating a whole bunch of (mainly interesting and speculative, to be fair!) stuff from fundamental physics, what is in the cosmos, life, humans, tech etc... from a variety of sources. And as I generally type them up, I drop stuff that I think is 'too basic'. I am not wikipedia after all .