Microscopic Phase Geometry and the Topological Origin of Mass and Charge

Abstract This work develops a site-based ontological framework in which mass and charge arise as distinct topological defects of a microscopic phase defined on a static substrate. Each site carries a two-component phase whose radial variation generates curvature and defines mass, while its angular variation generates winding and defines charge. These two components are intrinsically orthogonal, allowing mass and charge to emerge from a single underlying phase while remaining physically independent. The model introduces a minimal set of structural primitives-sites, phase orientation, and mass-defect or charge-defect configurations without presupposing metric geometry, field equations, or dynamical laws. Fields are interpreted as coherent arrangements of site phases, and energy corresponds to changes in structural order. The framework is conceptually self-contained and establishes a foundational ontology upon which dynamical formulations may later be constructed. By separating structural origin from dynamics, the approach clarifies how mass and charge can emerge as topological excitations of a unified microscopic phase.