Quantum Entropy and the Mechanism of Gravity

Abstract

Quantum entropy measures the number of possible microstates of position and momentum due to quantum uncertainty. Black hole entropy is an example of quantum entropy. Classical entropy, like the Gibbs entropy of a gas, does not depend on quantum uncertainty. This paper is the first to define the quantum entropy of ordinary matter, termed “atomic entropy”. The atomic entropy at the surface of a spherical object depends on its mass and is inversely proportional to its surface area. The entropy scale factor (ESF) is a theory that all changes in the scale of spacetime are due to differences in entropy. Defining atomic entropy allows the ESF to make predictions for systems including ordinary matter. In the ESF, gravitational objects are attracted to one another because gravitational entropy, a form of quantum entropy, increases as the distance between these objects decreases. The increase in gravitational entropy increases the total entropy of the system, in accordance with the second law of thermodynamics. This paper is also the first to use the gradients in the scale of space and time predicted by the ESF to derive Newtonian gravity. Explaining the mechanism of gravity in this way provides a link between quantum physics and gravity.

Keywords

• Gravity
• entropy
• general relativity
• dark matter