A new twist on this theory is that scientists at MIT added extremely small, exotic black holes with unique properties into the equation.

A new look at dark matter

For decades, scientists have been puzzled by the nature of dark matter, which despite its invisibility has a significant gravitational effect on the cosmos. Hawking theorized that Dark matter may be the result of primordial black holes – Small objects with the mass of an asteroid but the size of an atom – scattered throughout the universe.

Although invisible, these black holes distort space-time and attract ordinary matter, contributing to the formation of stars, galaxies and other celestial structures.

The role of exotic black holes

A more exotic class of microscopic black holes may play a crucial role in the birth of primordial black holes and, by extension, dark matter, according to researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

These exotic black holes are assumed to be the size of a proton but the mass of a rhinoceros. They are believed to have formed just after the Big Bang, partially at the same time as primordial black holes and less than a second before.

Although these exotic black holes evaporate almost instantly, their brief existence may have significantly affected the formation of primordial black holes.

The key to this effect lies in the exotic color charge that these microscopic black holes may have picked up from the quark-gluon plasma (a state of matter composed of elementary particles) that existed when they formed. This colored charge, unlike the neutral charge characteristic of primordial black holes, can leave visible traces of the impact of exotic black holes.

Implications for dark matter research

The MIT physicists’ theoretical concept is that these traces, if found, would be May become evidence of the origin of dark matter through the influence of primordial black holes. By proving the existence of these exotic black holes, scientists could replace one mysterious concept with another and potentially open new avenues in the search for dark matter.

David Kaiser, professor of physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, emphasized the importance of this discovery:

Although these short-lived exotic objects do not exist today, they may have influenced cosmic history in ways that may manifest in subtle signals today. This opens up new research opportunities within the scope of the idea that all dark matter may consist of black holes.

The challenge now is to uncover these theoretical clues that could revolutionize our understanding of the universe. By discovering the remnants of these exotic black holes, scientists hope to confirm the complex relationship between dark matter and primordial black holes, thereby shedding light on one of the greatest mysteries of modern astrophysics.