starship-design: Re: On the use of vacuum for interstellar travel

[TLG.van.der.Linden@tip.nl (Timothy van der Linden)]

Timothy replies:

>This abstract is in a NASA database. Can anyone explain what it is talking
>about? It seems to be proposing a method of tapping ZPF without a
>gradient...

I'll first give a few keywords, then try to translate it.

Gauge particle               : particle that exchange forces (eg. photon,
                               gluon, graviton)
Vacuum                       : absence of matter and positive energy.
Analytically solvable system : theoretical possibility
Second law of thermodynamics : A machine cannot give forth more energy than
                               it absorbs.
Coherent                     : smooth/equal, absence of disturbances.
Resonance                    : wave (transfer of energy)
Tunneling                    : quantum-mechanical possibility to get
                               something on the other side of a barrier,
                               while it has less energy than necessary
                               according to classical-mechanics.
Soliton                      : wave-state that does not diminish over time
                               (matter could be a wave-state)

>TITLE: On the use of vacuum for interstellar travel. II
>Abstract: 
>
>It is suggested that it may be possible to arrange the production of
>strange matter in such a way as to form an analytically solvable system
>which does not obey the second law of thermodynamics.

Some people suggest it is possible that at least in theory energy can be
produced from "nothing".

>It is further
>speculated that the coherence of vacuum can be broken with resonances using
>gauge particles,

It is further speculated that this "nothing" can be exited by sending
photons, gluons, or gravitons through it.

>and that effects can be tunnelled from the quantum level
>before the coherence of the vacuum is reestablished.

The particles created during this exited state should then be extracted
before they are re-absorbed and before the exitement is gone.

>It is recommended that
>resonance tunneling be investigated as a possible mechanism for quark and
>gluon materialization to both bound states and the related vacuum state, in
>the form of solitons.

Some people should study this possibility to extract something from "nothing"

Timothy