Physicists from the University of Leeds, Forschungszentrum Jülich, and the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) have revealed new insights into the Universe’s potential state of being trapped in a metastable state, known as a false vacuum. This cosmic transition to a more stable true vacuum could have significant implications for the Universe’s formation and fate in the coming billions of years.
Nearly 50 years ago, quantum field theory pioneer Sidney Coleman proposed that our Universe might be in a false vacuum, awaiting a transition to a true vacuum state. This change could result in a drastic transformation of the Universe’s structure.
“We’re talking about a process by which the Universe would completely change its structure. The fundamental constants could instantaneously change, and the world as we know it would collapse like a house of cards,” explained Zlatko Papić, lead author of the study and Professor at the University of Leeds.
Predicting the exact timeline is challenging, but it is likely to span millions or even billions of years.
The international research team, including Jaka Vodeb from Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany, and Jean-Yves Desaules from ISTA, has managed to model this process, known as false vacuum decay. Utilizing a 5564-qubit quantum annealer designed by D-Wave Quantum Inc., they demonstrated how bubbles of true vacuum form and interact.
This work could advance our understanding of quantum dynamics and aid in solving complex problems related to the fundamental physics of the Universe.
Key questions about how bubbles of true vacuum form, move, interact, and spread remain unanswered. The physicists used a quantum computer to simulate the vacuum states using qubits to investigate this mechanism.
“Bubble formation is the first step of false vacuum decay. We are very excited to have been able to observe it in real-time,” said Desaules.
Experiments showed that large bubbles were isolated, evolving only by interacting with nearby bubbles. This new view of false vacuum decay suggests a mix of bubbles, with larger ones interacting directly and smaller ones moving freely.
The study also shows quantum annealers’ potential to solve practical problems beyond theoretical physics, potentially revolutionizing fields like cryptography, materials science, and energy-efficient computing.
Vodeb concluded, “These breakthroughs not only push the boundaries of scientific knowledge but also pave the way for future technologies.”
Journal Reference:
- Jaka Vodeb, Jean-Yves Desaules, Andrew Hallam, Andrea Rava, Gregor Humar, Dennis Willsch, Fengping Jin, Madita Willsch, Kristel Michielsen, and Zlatko Papić. 2025. Stirring the false vacuum via interacting quantized bubbles on a 5,564-qubit quantum annealer. Nature Physics. DOI: 10.1038/s41567-024-02765-w
Source: Tech Explorist
