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Concept
Superstring theory
Summary
Superstring theory is an attempt to explain all of the particles and fundamental forces of nature in one theory by modeling them as vibrations of tiny supersymmetric strings.
'Superstring theory' is a shorthand for supersymmetric string theory because unlike bosonic string theory, it is the version of string theory that accounts for both fermions and bosons and incorporates supersymmetry to model gravity.
Since the second superstring revolution, the five superstring theories (Type I, Type IIA, Type IIB, HO and HE) are regarded as different limits of a single theory tentatively called M-theory.
One of the deepest open problems in theoretical physics is formulating a theory of quantum gravity. Such a theory incorporates both the theory of general relativity, which describes gravitation and applies to large-scale structures, and quantum mechanics or more specifically quantum field theory, which describes the other three fundamental forces that act on the atomic scale.
Quantum field theory, in particular the Standard model, is currently the most successful theory to describe fundamental forces, but while computing physical quantities of interest, naïvely one obtains infinite values. Physicists developed the technique of renormalization to 'eliminate these infinities' to obtain finite values which can be experimentally tested. This technique works for three of the four fundamental forces: Electromagnetism, the strong force and the weak force, but does not work for gravity, which is non-renormalizable. Development of a quantum theory of gravity therefore requires different means than those used for the other forces.
According to superstring theory, or more generally string theory, the fundamental constituents of reality are strings with radius on the order of the Planck length (about 10−33 cm). An appealing feature of string theory is that fundamental particles can be viewed as excitations of the string. The tension in a string is on the order of the Planck force (1044 newtons).
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