The Potential of Neutronium: Creating a Man-Made Neutron Star on Earth

In summary, a pure neutron star on a small scale can be created by forcing protons and electrons to occupy the same space, and larger scale during a stars collapse protons and electrons essentially are forced to occupy the same space as a neutron. It would be very hard to simulate this on Earth. If humanity could create some kind of super dense element composed entirely of protons or neutrons , it seems to me that essentially we could localize enough mass to do all sorts of quirky things with gravity (bend light etc/create G-distortion fields) and maybe even manipulate time a bit.
  • #1
Dfox
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Essentially what would it take to create a man-made neutron ballast/balloon (free neutrons under pressure contained in a vessel )
Essentially a pure neutron star on a small scale.
In larger scale during a stars collapse protons and electrons essentially are forced to occupy the same space acting as a neutron.
How hard would it be to simulate that on Earth ?
Essentially Neutronium, how can we make sustained Neutronium?

Also could the same thing be done with protons instead of neutrons.
Could a proton star exist? Why is there so little literature on Proton Neutron Collision/Fusion?

If humanity could create some kind of super dense element composed entirely of protons or neutrons , it seems to me that essentially we could localize enough mass to do all sorts of quirky things with gravity (bend light etc/create G-distortion fields) and maybe even manipulate time a bit.

I don't get why there is so little going into such concepts, creating a neutron star of sorts would provide humanity with an entire new frontier , like creating a stick to poke the universe and see what its made of.

And why even stop there why not make stars based on quarks or even smaller "particles"? (get rid of the shell that is a neutron altogether), essentially using the yolk of an egg to make more dense matter.

Now that I am looking deeper into it there may even be the potential to create a preon star which would only be 10cm in diameter or so.
How hard could it be for humans to make something 4inches wide for petes sake?
 
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  • #2
Dfox said:
Essentially what would it take to create a man-made neutron ballast/balloon (free neutrons under pressure contained in a vessel ) ...
A star or at least the same amount of matter in some form, having a total mass which is considerably greater than the mass of our Sun.
Then just let gravity do it's thing.
 
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  • #3
Dfox said:
How hard could it be for humans to make something 4inches wide for petes sake?
The pressure needed to confine neutronium is on the order of ##10^{35}## pascals. So here's an entertaining exercise: calculate the amount of work done by this pressure in reducing a volume of two liters to one liter (which is the sort of thing we'd have to do to turn ordinary degenerate matter into neutronium). How does that compare with the amount of power generated worldwide in a year?
 
  • #4
Dfox said:
(free neutrons under pressure contained in a vessel )
This would, in itself, be a hard thing to achieve. Neutrons would not be constrained by a container because they could just pass between the molecules of the material, being unaffected by the interatomic electric fields. I suggest they would leak away very quickly, as they do from a nuclear reactor. The reactor screening just serves to slow them down rather than stop them escaping, I think.
Affaics, the only way to get neutrons to stay in the same place is with a strong gravitational field - which they do react to.
 

FAQ: The Potential of Neutronium: Creating a Man-Made Neutron Star on Earth

What is a proton?

A proton is a subatomic particle found in the nucleus of an atom. It has a positive charge and its mass is approximately 1 atomic mass unit (amu).

What is a neutron?

A neutron is a subatomic particle found in the nucleus of an atom. It has no charge and its mass is approximately 1 amu.

What is the difference between a proton and a neutron?

The main difference between a proton and a neutron is their charge. Protons have a positive charge, while neutrons have no charge. They also have slightly different masses, with protons being slightly lighter than neutrons.

What is the purpose of balancing protons and neutrons?

The purpose of balancing protons and neutrons is to ensure the stability of an atom. If an atom has too many or too few protons and neutrons, it can become unstable and undergo radioactive decay.

How do scientists balance protons and neutrons in an atom?

Scientists can balance protons and neutrons in an atom by manipulating the number of each in the nucleus. This can be done through nuclear reactions such as fusion and fission, or through the addition or removal of particles through artificial means.

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