We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Astronomy

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What is the Rarest Substance in the Universe?

Michael Anissimov
By
Updated: May 21, 2024
Views: 17,334
Share

The rarest substance is the universe is probably the quark-gluon plasma or something like it. This is a phase of matter generated only under the most intense temperatures and pressures. For most of the first millionth of a second after the Big Bang, the explosive event that created our universe, all matter was in the form of a quark-gluon plasma. Quarks and gluons are particles that make up nucleons like neutrons and protons, which in turn make up the atoms that constitute all matter. Quarks are the particles with mass, while gluons are the force-mediating particles that "glue" the quarks together.

Though the quark-gluon plasma is currently a contender for the rarest substance in the universe, at its start, it was the normal state of matter. A quark-gluon plasma is a bath of almost-free quarks and gluons, which typically are tightly locked into nucleons. Conventional nucleons are so tightly held together that even a nuclear explosion or the temperature and pressure at the core of the Sun is not enough to shake them apart. Free quarks have never been observed, and some physicists think the very phenomenon of free quarks is physically impossible.

Quark-gluon plasma is created in some unusual circumstances outside of the Big Bang. We've been able to produce it at will in particle accelerators, using huge amounts of energy focused on heavy ions, since the year 2000. It took about two decades of trying to create it, the rarest substance we know of. The feat was accomplished at the CERN particle accelerator in Switzerland. More recently, CERN's Large Hadron Collider is conducting experiments on the quark-gluon plasma.

The quark-gluon plasma may not actually be the rarest substance if it turns out to exist in the centers of extremely massive stars. Some neutron stars (the remnant left by some of the largest supernovas) are more dense than would be predicted by theory, causing some scientists to suspect that these are not actually neutron stars, but actually quark stars. Neutron stars have a radius between 10 and 20 km (6 - 12 mi), but a mass slightly larger than that of the Sun. In contrast, quark stars, if they exist, would have a radius between 3 and 9 km (2-6 mi) and a mass comparable to neutron stars, making them the most dense objects in the universe. The supernova remnant RX J1856.5-3754, the neutron star closest to Earth, is one potential candidate for being a quark star.

There are other substances that contend for the title of rarest substance in the universe. These include the exotic particles created under very high energy cosmic ray collisions, and other exotic particles that existed at the dawn of the universe but have never been seen since. Antimatter does not qualify as the rarest substance in the universe because it can still be found floating in space practically everywhere, albeit in very low proportions.

Share
All The Science is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.
Michael Anissimov
By Michael Anissimov
Michael Anissimov is a dedicated All The Science contributor and brings his expertise in paleontology, physics, biology, astronomy, chemistry, and futurism to his articles. An avid blogger, Michael is deeply passionate about stem cell research, regenerative medicine, and life extension therapies. His professional experience includes work with the Methuselah Foundation, Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence, and Lifeboat Foundation, further showcasing his commitment to scientific advancement.
Discussion Comments
Michael Anissimov
Michael Anissimov
Michael Anissimov is a dedicated All The Science contributor and brings his expertise in paleontology, physics, biology...
Learn more
Share
https://www.allthescience.org/what-is-the-rarest-substance-in-the-universe.htm
Copy this link
All The Science, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

All The Science, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.