Are Primordial Black Holes real? They could\u2019ve formed in the unusual physics that dominated the Universe shortly after the Big Bang. The idea dates back to the 1960s, but so far, the lack of evidence makes them purely hypothetical.<\/p>\n
If they do exist, a new paper suggests they may be hiding in places so unlikely that nobody ever thought to look there.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Black holes form when massive stars reach the end of their lives and suffer gravitational collapse. However, Primordial Black Holes (PBHs) didn\u2019t involve stars. Physicists hypothesize that PBHs formed in the early Universe from extremely dense pockets of sub-atomic matter that collapsed directly into black holes. They could form part or all of what we call dark matter. <\/p>\n However, they remain hypothetical because none have been observed. <\/p>\n New research in Physics of the Dark Universe suggests researchers are not looking in the right places. It\u2019s titled \u201cSearching for small primordial black holes in planets, asteroids and here on Earth.\u201d The co-authors are De-Chang Dai and Dejan Stojkovic, from Case Western Reserve University and the State University of New York, respectively. <\/p>\n The authors claim that evidence for PBHs could be found in objects as large as hollowed out planetoids or asteroids and objects as small as rocks here on Earth. <\/p>\n \u201cSmall primordial black holes could be captured by rocky planets or asteroids, consume their liquid cores from inside and leave hollow structures,\u201d the authors write. \u201cAlternatively, a fast black hole can leave a narrow tunnel in a solid object while passing through it. We could look for such micro-tunnels here on Earth in very old rocks,\u201d the authors claim, explaining that the search wouldn\u2019t involve specialized, expensive equipment. <\/p>\n The authors work leans heavily on other research suggesting that PBH masses between 1016<\/sup> and 1010 <\/sup>solar masses could be candidates for dark matter. These PBHs could be captured by stars or trapped in their interiors upon formation. The PBH would slowly consume gas inside the stars.<\/p>\n However, these authors take it in a different direction. \u201cWe extend this idea to planets and asteroids, which can also be expected to host PBHs,\u201d they write, explaining that the PBHs could be captured by these objects either during their creation or after their creation. Once inside a rocky body, the PBH would consume the liquid core, hollowing it out and leaving it empty. <\/p>\n \u201cWe have to think outside of the box because what has been done to find primordial black holes previously hasn\u2019t worked.\u201d<\/p>\n Dejan Stojkovic, SUNY<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n \u201cIf the object has a liquid central core, then a captured PBH can absorb the liquid core, whose density is higher than the density of the outer solid layer,\u201d Stojkovic said.<\/p>\n If the asteroid or other body suffers an impact, the PBH could escape, leaving nothing but a hollow shell behind, which could be detectable. <\/p>\n \u201cIf the object\u2019s density is too low for its size, that\u2019s a good indication it\u2019s hollow,\u201d Stojkovic said. Studying an object\u2019s orbit with a telescope is enough to reveal hollowness.<\/p>\n Another possibility the authors present is fast-moving tiny PBHs that leave microscopic tunnels in objects. \u201cSince the cross-section of a small PHBs is very small, a fast enough PBH will most likely create a straight tunnel after passing through the asteroid,\u201d the authors explain. In that case, a straight tunnel through an asteroid could be evidence of a PBH.<\/p>\n PBHs could also leave microscopic tunnels in rocks and other objects on Earth. \u201cThe same effect could allow detection of a PBH here on Earth if we look for sudden appearance of narrow tunnels in metal slabs,\u201d the authors write. <\/p>\n What\u2019s different about these hypothesized PBHs is detection. In other scenarios, space telescopes, gravitational wave observatories, or even monitoring distant quasars in microwaves are required to detect them. But in this work, detection is potentially much cheaper and easier.<\/p>\n \u201cThe chances of finding these signatures are small, but searching for them would not require much resources and the potential payoff, the first evidence of a primordial black hole, would be immense,\u201d said Stojkovic. \u201cWe have to think outside of the box because what has been done to find primordial black holes previously hasn\u2019t worked.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhile our estimate gives a very small probability of finding such tunnels, looking for them does not require expensive equipment and long preparation, and the payoff might be significant,\u201d the authors explain.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have to look at the cost versus the benefit. Does it cost much to do this? No, it doesn\u2019t,\u201d Stojkovic said in a press release.<\/p>\n This is thinking outside the box, or outside the standard model in any case. Cosmology is kind of at a standstill while we wrestle with the idea of dark matter. Could PBHs be dark matter? Could they behave like the authors suggest, and be detected in this manner?<\/p>\n \u201cThe smartest people on the planet have been working on these problems for 80 years and have not solved them yet,\u201d Stojkovic said. \u201cWe don\u2019t need a straightforward extension of the existing models. We probably need a completely new framework altogether.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
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