Geometric Unification of the Strong Interaction: SGCU Theory Version 2.3 — Trefoil Knots, Quark Confinement, and the Deconfinement Phase Transition

In the Standard Model, the strong interaction is described by quantum chromodynamics (QCD), yet the nature of quark confinement and asymptotic freedom lacks a direct geometric picture. Based on the SGCU framework, this paper proposes that the strong interaction is a collective manifestation of trefoil knot topological defects of the spatial autodynamicity field Ψ. The three crossings of the trefoil knot correspond to the three colours of SU(3), while its handedness distinguishes quarks from antiquarks. The knot tension generates a linear confining potential, preventing quarks from existing in isolation. At high temperature or density, the knots “melt”, leading to a deconfinement phase transition and the formation of a quark–gluon plasma. We further argue that this phase transition recurs in each cosmic cycle: knots melt at high temperature after the bounce, reform upon cooling, melt again during contraction, and finally undergo a unification phase transition at the bounce. This geometric unification places the strong interaction alongside gravity, electromagnetism, and the weak force within the same topological framework, and yields testable predictions for heavy‑ion collisions, compact stars, and primordial gravitational waves.