The fundamental building blocks of the universe aren't particles, but something entirely different: a discovery made by physicists.

The string theory posits that the fundamental building blocks of the universe are not particles like electrons or quarks, but tiny vibrating strings of energy. It is the vibration and arrangement of these strings that create particles, matter, energy, and the fundamental forces of the universe. String theory suggests that everything in the universe is interconnected, and particles are not point-like objects but rather strings. However, proving string theory has remained elusive. Nevertheless, the authors of a study published in the journal Physical Review Letters have obtained some clues indicating that this theory may be correct, as reported by Interesting Engineering.

Physicists estimate that the size of a string is approximately 10 to the power of minus 35 meters. However, these strings have yet to be detected, as even the most powerful particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider, can only detect objects as small as 10 to the power of minus 20 meters. Thus, proving the existence of strings in the universe through experiments is currently impossible; more powerful particle accelerators are needed.

To theoretically determine the presence of strings, physicists have utilized a mathematical construct known as bootstrap. This approach allows for insights into the physical properties of the system, even without knowledge of its underlying fundamental dynamics.

This method requires starting with basic rules that the system must follow. These rules are generally related to symmetry, causality, and mathematical consistency. For example, to describe the interactions of strings, physicists employed scattering amplitudes, which are mathematical expressions that describe the likelihood of particles interacting and scattering off each other during collisions.

Physicists used amplitudes known as locality and unitarity. The former describes the principle that nothing can instantly affect something far away, as forces require time to propagate; thus, causal relationships remain consistent. The latter states that in quantum mechanics, the probabilities of all possible outcomes must always total 100%, and these probabilities cannot be negative. This rule also constrains how particles can interact with one another.

When physicists applied locality and unitarity to the mathematical construct, they derived the Veneziano amplitude, which describes the scattering of strings.

Therefore, theoretically, strings could exist in the universe, and string theory might be correct. However, this research cannot confirm this definitively, and experiments using more powerful particle accelerators are necessary. It is possible that such experiments could ultimately detect strings, which would transform our understanding of the universe.