What do we know about Baryogenesis?

[pdyxs]

I'm part of a games studio who is currently building a game about high energy particle physics (essentially you control a quark and have to try not to get annihilated by anti-quarks), and we're thinking of setting it just after the Big Bang.

One idea we've been toying with is that you're essentially playing out the conflict between particles and antiparticles, and that you possibly play in a part in baryogenesis (the process that allowed the quarks to 'win').

As far as I can tell, baryogenesis is still pretty vague. We know that there's CP asymmetry between particles and antiparticles due to the Weak Force, and that this could lead to the imbalance, but from what I've read, the CP violation isn't really enough to cause the imbalance observed.

If this is the case, it's a really nice juicy mystery that we could approach in the game. If not, I'm hoping we can utilise whatever else is out there.

So my question is: what else, if anything, has been found out about baryogenesis?

 

[mfb]

I'm part of a games studio who is currently building a game about high energy particle physics (essentially you control a quark and have to try not to get annihilated by anti-quarks)

I see negative effects on the physics knowledge of players.

and that you possibly play in a part in baryogenesis (the process that allowed the quarks to 'win').

That would require the own annihilation, as every other process involving particle changes. A very common process in the early universe anyway.

So my question is: what else, if anything, has been found out about baryogenesis?

It happened, and it requires high energy. And, well... some other stuff.
As usual, Wikipedia gives an introduction.

 

[Chronos]

Actually, our knowledge of baryogenesis is rather advanced compared to other areas of cosmology. Much of this knowledge was contributed by particle physicists and has good experimental support. We have predicted primordial abundances of the elements with great accuracy. There remain a few quibbles over the relative abundance of some of the heavier elements [e.g., deuterium, lithium], but, the predictions are generally very good. We also have extensive knowledge of the energies required to produce most of the fundamental particles.

 

[mfb]

@Chronos: Baryogenesis happened before the formation of nuclei via fusion. The second process is well understood, the first one is not (at least not as good as other processes).

 

[sardar]

I am excited to hear that your game is exploring the concept of baryogenesis and the role of particles and antiparticles in the early universe. Baryogenesis is a fascinating and still largely unsolved mystery in the field of particle physics.

We do know that baryogenesis is the process by which the universe shifted from containing equal amounts of matter and antimatter to the predominance of matter that we see today. This is known as the baryon asymmetry problem. As you mentioned, this imbalance is thought to be due to CP violation, or the violation of charge-parity symmetry, which is a fundamental property of the weak force.

However, as you also noted, the amount of CP violation observed in the Standard Model of particle physics is not enough to account for the observed baryon asymmetry. This has led scientists to explore other potential mechanisms or processes that could have contributed to baryogenesis.

One such possibility is through the process of leptogenesis, which involves the decay of heavy particles called leptons in the early universe. Another theory is that baryogenesis occurred through a phase transition in the early universe, where the laws of physics were different and allowed for the creation of more matter than antimatter.

While we still do not have a definitive answer to the question of baryogenesis, ongoing research and experiments, such as those at the Large Hadron Collider, are helping us to better understand the fundamental forces and particles that make up our universe. Your game could provide a fun and engaging way for players to explore and learn about these complex concepts. I look forward to seeing how you incorporate baryogenesis into your game and how it may spark curiosity and interest in the field of particle physics.