Fast Radio Bursts: A Possible Explanation
In Discrete Scale Relativity it is proposed that for every phenomenon on the Stellar Scale of the discrete self-similar cosmological hierarchy there is an analogous phenomenon on the Atomic Scale, and vice versa. Here is how that might apply in the case of Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs).
FRBs are very brief bursts of radio waves. They have durations on the order of milliseconds, have very high energies, and appear to originate at cosmological distances. Radiations at other wavelengths have not been detected for these events. Remarkably, it is conservatively estimated that on the order of multiple 1000s of these mysterious FRBs are occurring every day. Their physical characteristics indicate that the sources are ultracompact stellar-mass objects, but there has been no consensus on exactly what causes FRBs. It is pretty much an enigmatic phenomenon.
On the Atomic Scale there is a phenomenon called Bremsstrahlung , which is a German technical term meaning “braking radiation”, i.e., deceleration radiation. The archetypal example of this phenomenon is as follows. A high energy (high velocity) electron encounters a subatomic nucleus at close range and the electron’s path is deflected, causing it to be decelerated. This means that the electron loses energy, but the energy cannot just vanish. The energy is emitted by the electron as a high-energy gamma-ray.
Can Discrete Scale Relativity offer an analogous Stellar Scale phenomenon for Atomic Scale Bremsstrahlung? Definitely! DSR’s predictions for the Dark Matter (DM) include a very numerous subset of DM objects that are electron analogues and have a mass of 8 x 10^–5 solar mass. The rest of the DM is composed of analogues of subatomic nuclei, which have masses ranging from 0.145 to about 35 solar mass. All of these predicted DM objects are Kerr-Newman ultracompact objects, which are charged and rotating black hole solutions of the Einstein-Maxwell equations (General Relativity + Electromagnetism).
Some of the DM objects will be moving at relativistic velocities. If a Stellar Scale electron analogue passes close to a stellar Scale nucleus analogue you have an exact analogue of the Atomic Scale Bremsstrahlung phenomenon.
The deflection of the electron analogue by the nucleus analogue will cause a deceleration of the former, which will emit radiation in a brief burst. The specific scaling for DSR says that the Stellar Scale analogue will radiate at a wavelength that is 5.2 x 10^17 times the wavelength of its Atomic Scale counterpart. Are radio waves about 10¹⁸ times longer than gamma waves? Yes!
So Discrete Scale Relativity offers a simple and natural explanation for Fast Radio Bursts that is ready for definitive scientific testing. Those tests will require observation of more FRBs and collection of more data on their energy and frequency spectra. The masses of the objects involved in the phenomenon are critical pieces of evidence that need to be better determined for unique tests.
These are exciting times for those seeking a new and more unified cosmological paradigm.