Quantum Mechanics and Cosmological Phenomena

Quantum mechanics and cosmology intersect in attempts to explain the origin, composition and large-scale behaviour of the universe. At the smallest scales, quantum fluctuations in the early universe are believed to seed the inhomogeneities that later evolve into galaxies and cosmic structures. The inflationary epoch, a period of accelerated expansion driven by a quantum field, provides a compelling framework whereby vacuum energy and field dynamics set initial conditions for cosmological evolution. Beyond inflation, the nature of dark matter and dark energy invites quantum-theoretical insights: dark matter may exhibit wave-like behaviour on galactic scales, while the observed accelerated expansion is often ascribed to a quantum correction of spacetime geometry. Meanwhile, attempts to formulate a quantum theory of gravity—whether by canonical quantisation of the metric or through path-integral approaches—aim to resolve singularities and explain the cosmological constant problem. The interplay of quantum principles with large-scale observations, such as the cosmic microwave background anisotropies and galaxy rotation curves, underscores the profound links between the very small and the cosmic vastness, revealing that quantum laws may govern phenomena from subatomic particles to the evolution of the universe itself.

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Quantum Mechanics and Cosmological Phenomena publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in quantum mechanics and cosmological phenomena across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Quantum potential: A non-classical potential arising in the Bohmian formulation of quantum mechanics that governs the quantum motion of particles and encodes wave-function curvature.
Wheeler–DeWitt equation: A canonical quantum gravity equation obtained by quantising the Hamiltonian constraint of general relativity, yielding a timeless wave functional of the spatial metric.
Navarro–Frenk–White density profile: An empirical model for the radial distribution of cold dark matter in haloes, characterised by a central cusp and a ρ∝r⁻³ behaviour at large radii.
Disformal transformation: A generalisation of conformal rescaling in which the spacetime metric is modified by both a scalar factor and additional terms depending on derivatives of a scalar field.
Infrared/ultraviolet duality: A conjectured correspondence between low-energy (large-scale) and high-energy (small-scale) physics, implying that features at cosmological distances mirror those at quantum scales.

References

1. Quantum model of galactic halos with an Navarro–Frenk–White dark matter profile. Astronomy & Astrophysics (2024).
2. The geometrical origin of dark energy. European Physical Journal C (2020).
3. Disformal transformations and the motion of a particle in semi-classical gravity. European Physical Journal C (2021).