From Elastic Continua to Space-time

TL;DR

This paper develops a theory linking space-time to elastic continua, using strain tensors to model cosmic expansion, and demonstrates better fit to supernova data than the Lambda-CDM model.

Contribution

It introduces a novel elastic continuum model of space-time that accounts for accelerated cosmic expansion, surpassing standard cosmological models in data fitting.

Findings

The elastic continuum model fits supernova data better than Lambda-CDM.

Strain tensor links geometry and elasticity in space-time.

The theory provides a new perspective on cosmic acceleration.

Abstract

Since the early days of the theory of electromagnetism and of gravity the idea of space, then space-time, as a sort of physical continuum hovered the scientific community. Actually general relativity shows the strong similarity that exists between the geometrical properties of space-time and the ones of a strained elastic continuum. The bridge between geometry and the elastic potential, as well in three as in three plus one dimensions, is the strain tensor, read as the non-trivial part of the metric tensor. On the basis of this remark and exploiting appropriate multidimensional embeddings, it is possible to build a full theory of space-time, allowing to account for the accelerated expansion of the universe. How this can be obtained is the content of the paper. The theory fits the cosmic accelerated expansion data from type Ia supernovae better than the Lambda-CDM model.