Variation of fundamental constants and white dwarfs

Abstract

Theories that attempt to unify the four fundamental interactions and alternative theories of gravity predict time and/or spatial variation of the fundamental constants of nature. Different versions of these theories predict different behaviours for these variations. In consequence, experimental and observational bounds are an important tool to check the validity of such proposals. In this paper, we review constraints on the possible variation of the fundamental constants from astronomical observations and geophysical experiments designed to test the constancy of the fundamental constants of nature over different timescales. We also focus on the limits that can be obtained from white dwarfs, which can constrain the variation of the constants with the gravitational potential.

15 pages, 2 figures, Proceedings article based on invited review talk for the IAU Symposium 357, "White Dwarfs as Probes of Fundamental Physics and Tracers of Planetary, Stellar, and Galactic Evolution"

References in corpus (16)

• Frequency ratio of two optical clock transitions in ${}^{171}$Yb${}^{+}$ and constraints on the time-variation of fundamental constants
• Improved limit on a temporal variation of $m_p/m_e$ from comparisons of Yb${}^{+}$ and Cs atomic clocks
• Spatial variation in the fine-structure constant -- new results from VLT/UVES
• Stability of the proton-to-electron mass ratio
• Coupled Variations of Fundamental Couplings and Primordial Nucleosynthesis
• The status of varying constants: a review of the physics, searches and implications
• Improved tests of Local Position Invariance using 87Rb and 133Cs fountains
• Impact of instrumental systematic errors on fine-structure constant measurements with quasar spectra
• High-precision limit on variation in the fine-structure constant from a single quasar absorption system
• The UVES Large Program for testing fundamental physics - III. Constraints on the fine-structure constant from 3 telescopes
• First constraint on cosmological variation of the proton-to-electron mass ratio from two independent telescopes
• Constraining the Variation of the Fine Structure Constant with Observations of Narrow Quasar Absorption Lines
• A constraint on a varying proton--electron mass ratio 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang
• Limits on a Gravitational Field Dependence of the Proton--Electron Mass Ratio from H${}_2$ in White Dwarf Stars
• Current and Future White Dwarf Mass-radius Constraints on Varying Fundamental Couplings and Unification Scenarios
• The variation of the fine structure constant: testing the dipole model with thermonuclear supernovae

Cited by in corpus (4)

• The minimally extended Varying Speed of Light (meVSL)
• Constraining a possible time-variation of the speed of light along with the fine-structure constant using strong gravitational lensing and Type Ia supernovae observations
• A search for the fine-structure constant evolution from fast radio bursts and type Ia supernovae data
• Non-parametric reconstruction of the fine structure constant with galaxy clusters