Dynamic measurement of matter creation

Abstract

IF a rotor could be spun so that it had an inertial decay time ∼ 10¹¹ yr, 10¹⁸ s, it could test matter creation cosmologies^1–3 at a significant level. The advantage of this method over previous ones^4–8 is that the result is independent of the form in which matter is created, providing it stays in place. We have designed an experiment to test this process; it is under construction and is described here. It consists of an inertially spinning rotor suspended inside another rotor, a modification of the double magnetic suspension⁸. Past measurements or estimates have not unequivocally answered the question of matter creation. Cohen and King⁴ established an upper limit of 4×10⁻²³ g per g per s on the creation rate of hydrogen in mercury metal. Gittus⁵ suggested that matter created in rocks takes the form of interstitial atoms which diffuse into dislocations. Towe⁶ disputed this, noting that if mass proportional creation were occurring, 30% of the atoms in old terrestrial rocks would occupy interstitial positions and this would result in lattice disruptions. Gittus⁷ later proposed that the matter multiplication rate for crystalline materials could be found by determining the ratio of the shear modulus to the crystal viscosity. He suggested that a reasonable estimate for the sensitivity of the method might be 3×10⁻¹⁸ atoms per atom per s, although this has not been tested. In a geophysical argument, Wesson⁸ can account for the observed expansion rate of the earth by appealing to a mass proportional matter creation whose rate is 7×10⁻¹⁸ g per g per s, but he notes that this is in conflict with the result of Cohen and King; it exceeds Dirac's prediction by several times.