How the Constants Move Together: Linkage Ratios Between Variations of Alpha and Mu and What They Let Each Probe Say

Constants rarely vary alone. In unification scenarios the fractional changes in the proton-to-electron mass ratio and the fine-structure constant are locked by a ratio set by two response parameters, and that ratio ranges from -0.3 in a minimal electromagnetic-response scenario to -19.5 in a grand-unified-like one and -4 in a large-response one. The consequence is concrete: if alpha had shifted by the full amount the quasar dipole claim allows, the grand-unified linkage would predict a mu shift of -2.34e-04, more than a thousand times the room the methanol measurement leaves. Joint statements, not single-constant ones, are therefore the correct currency of this field, and this paper tabulates the exchange rates. Computed from published relations, not measured.

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Publication Details

Journal
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Published
2026-11-11
DOI
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.24138554
Primary Topic
Advanced Mathematical Theories and Applications
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

How the Constants Move Together: Linkage Ratios Between Variations of Alpha and Mu and What They Let Each Probe Say

William Alexander Aldred
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Advanced Mathematical Theories and Applications
article

How the Constants Move Together: Linkage Ratios Between Variations of Alpha and Mu and What They Let Each Probe Say

William Alexander Aldred
article en

Abstract

Constants rarely vary alone. In unification scenarios the fractional changes in the proton-to-electron mass ratio and the fine-structure constant are locked by a ratio set by two response parameters, and that ratio ranges from -0.3 in a minimal electromagnetic-response scenario to -19.5 in a grand-unified-like one and -4 in a large-response one. The consequence is concrete: if alpha had shifted by the full amount the quasar dipole claim allows, the grand-unified linkage would predict a mu shift of -2.34e-04, more than a thousand times the room the methanol measurement leaves. Joint statements, not single-constant ones, are therefore the correct currency of this field, and this paper tabulates the exchange rates. Computed from published relations, not measured.

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Advanced Mathematical Theories and Applications
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