What if we all get connected to enduringly realize that everything is just unified in this universe??? The search for this connectivity started from the early decades of the origin of science. You may be familiar with the String Theory or the theory of Quantum gravity, which is arguably the best-known theory ever proposed to extend our understanding of the physical universe and ‘the theory of everything’.Though we say String theory, this mathematical model that excellently describes all fundamental forces and matter in the universe is a broad and deep area both in tackling out problems and in the area of research. Bosonic string theory, Superstring theory, Quantum field theory etc.are various versions of the same. Many models of string theory also predicted the existence of several particles but haven’t yet been discovered so far. Christopher Reynolds and his team of Cambridge University conducted a study to find these particles, names Axions. These are expected to possess extremely low or even zero mass and show some unusual properties like Convertibility. Axions, when interacted with the magnetic field, get converted to photons and vice versa when conditions favour. Axion-like particles are also thought to exist but differ in a few aspects. Succinctly, axions will definitely be a shaft of light to reveal the hidden mysteries of the universe and dark matter.
Though we excel in theoretical ideas and explanations, only a few experimental tests have proved effective. Thanks to the efforts of eminent scientists in NASA, we were able to reach a significant step ahead in this field of study. NASA’s Chandra X-ray observatory, from its observations of the supermassive black hole in M87, gave out trenchant results, more precise and sensitive than any other conducted till then. The results were published in the February 10th,2020 issue of the Astrophysical Journal (available online also). However, the possible interpretation of the work is the non-existence of axion-like particles. But to not lose hope, they concluded that these particles may have higher masses and lower convertibility than what Physicists expected. This, in fact, gives a ray of hope to all the ongoing works and researches in the field. Science is eagerly waiting for more updates to really find out this mystery in the universe.
– Sreebala P S
Image credit: NASA/CXC/Cambridge Univ./C.S.Reynolds.
Chandra X-ray observatory.
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