a 5th state of mass?

[36grit]

Do you think an atom can exist as information on a quantum field? Perhaps waiting for the conditions to be right for re-assembly?

Some kind of, "information packet" similar to the information flying around on the internet?

 

I read in Astronomy magazine that: " in the early processes of the BB that it was to hot for neutrons and protons to exist" (in so many words). So, at some point during the expansion mass was created or assembled. Got me to thinking that there might be a fith state of pro atomic matter.

 

 

[swansont]

Bose-Einstein Condensates are often referred to as the fifth state, at least recently. What you're describing sounds a lot like a plasma, albeit a very, very hot one.

[ajb]

We could also think about quark or QCD matter.

 

• quark-gluon plasmas.
  
• Colour superconducting matter (which is a Fermi liquid).
  

 

These are interesting area of current reserach. These would represent new phases of matter which are conjectured to be of interest from a cosmological point of view (i.e. the early Universe) as well as an astrophysical point of view, such states of matter may be found in dense neutron stars. The conditions for the formation of such matter are extreme and not even nuclei would form.

[timo]

Perhaps for clarification: what's being called a "state" and what not is purely by convention (at least as far as I am aware of, that is). There is no physics behind it. A very similar and physically relevant term is "phase". There is a huge amount of different phases, e.g. the different structures of ice, nematic phase, superconducting phase, the ferromagnetic phase, ... . The reason that some of the phases are called "state of matter" is purely convention and based on what is practical in everyday live (since from a physical point of view different crystal structures are more distinct from another than liquid and gas are).

Edited February 10, 2011 by timo

[alpha2cen]

"Phase" is a thermodynamic concept. Gas phase, liquid phase, solid phase, gas-liquid phase, etc., are used in the thermodynamic text. "state" means current condition. "state" is used like this, i.e., steady state, unsteady state, etc.. And, there could exist many phases in the liquid or solid phases. If we mix water and oil together, the two liquids will not mixed well, and two independent phases will be created.

[Xittenn]

We could also think about quark or QCD matter.

 

• quark-gluon plasmas.
  
• Colour superconducting matter (which is a Fermi liquid).
  

 

These are interesting area of current reserach. These would represent new phases of matter which are conjectured to be of interest from a cosmological point of view (i.e. the early Universe) as well as an astrophysical point of view, such states of matter may be found in dense neutron stars. The conditions for the formation of such matter are extreme and not even nuclei would form.

 

Are not Quark-Gluon plasmas the important and limiting factor in current laser based fusion projects?

[steevey]

There actually might be 7 states of matter. One comes from the neutronium predicted to be in neutron stars, comprised of tightly pact matter and neutrons, and then the last one is the matter past that state, which forms a singularity.

Edited February 10, 2011 by steevey

[lemur]

Do you think an atom can exist as information on a quantum field? Perhaps waiting for the conditions to be right for re-assembly?

Some kind of, "information packet" similar to the information flying around on the internet?

 

I read in Astronomy magazine that: " in the early processes of the BB that it was to hot for neutrons and protons to exist" (in so many words). So, at some point during the expansion mass was created or assembled. Got me to thinking that there might be a fith state of pro atomic matter.

Could defining phases of matter be as simple as comparing momentum to binding force in a particular situation? If momentum is greater than binding force, the particle fragments into smaller pieces, right? Or it overcomes whatever force causes it to cling to its neighbors in some way. So if solidity can be fragmented into liquidity and condensation of liquid can be overcome to gasify the particles, and the electrons can be fragmented to ionize or plasma-fy them, why wouldn't it be logical that the nuclei can further be destabilized to the point of fragmentation? I don't know why this would be called a quantum phase, though. Isn't all matter in a quantum state insofar as it all consists of electrons whose energy levels vary in fixed amounts/quanta in that the photons they emit or absorb can only carry energy in such fixed amounts? I suppose if EM energy quanta define electrons and photons, though, why shouldn't they also define any particulate fragmentation at any sub-atomic level, right?

[alpha2cen]

We could also think about quark or QCD matter.

 

• quark-gluon plasmas.
• Colour superconducting matter (which is a Fermi liquid).

 

These are interesting area of current reserach. These would represent new phases of matter which are conjectured to be of interest from a cosmological point of view (i.e. the early Universe) as well as an astrophysical point of view, such states of matter may be found in dense neutron stars. The conditions for the formation of such matter are extreme and not even nuclei would form.

 

How can we recognize quark-gluon plasma are made?

Do we have any detection theory about this experiment?

At the recent LHC experiment, I heard, they stated "we made quark-gluon plasma state of the early Universe."