Cosmic inflation from entangled qubits: a white hole model for emergent spacetime

Abstract This paper presents the Horizon Model (HM) of cosmology, designed to resolve the cosmological constant problem by equating the vacuum energy density with that of the observable universe. Grounded in quantum information theory, HM proposes the first element of reality emerging from the Big Bang singularity as a Planck-sized qubit. The model views the Big Bang as the opening of a white hole, with spacetime and matter/energy emerging from the event horizon. Using the Schwarzschild solution and the Holographic Principle, HM calculates the number of vacuum qubits needed to equalize densities, and compares this to published estimates of the observable universe’s Shannon entropy (S). With this information, HM can calculate the state of the vacuum as a function of S. Results at S=1 (t=0) and $$S=1.46\times 10^{104}$$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>S</mml:mi> <mml:mo>=</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1.46</mml:mn> <mml:mo>×</mml:mo> <mml:msup> <mml:mn>10</mml:mn> <mml:mn>104</mml:mn> </mml:msup> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> bits (t=now) are presented. At t=0, the radius of the event horizon is predicted to be $$\sim 10^{-26}$$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>∼</mml:mo> <mml:msup> <mml:mn>10</mml:mn> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>-</mml:mo> <mml:mn>26</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msup> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> m in good agreement with the ad-hoc requirement of the current cosmic inflation paradigm. At t=now, HM predicts Hubble flow within $$0.8\sigma $$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>0.8</mml:mn> <mml:mi>σ</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> of the Planck collaboration measurement and can resolve the Hubble tension with a small adjustment of the vacuum energy density. HM predictions of the vacuum pressure ( $$\sim 10^{-10}$$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>∼</mml:mo> <mml:msup> <mml:mn>10</mml:mn> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>-</mml:mo> <mml:mn>10</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msup> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> Pa) are in good agreement with pressure measurements made on the lunar surface by NASA and the Chinese space program. Aligned with current research for spacetime emerging from surfaces, HM suggests new theoretical directions, potentially leading to a quantum theory of gravity.