Discovery Scenarios

Exploring Extra Dimensions

The discovery of extra dimensions of space, a prediction of string theory, would dramatically change the concept of space and time. Each point in space would have additional spatial dimensions attached to it. The extra dimensions might be very tiny or otherwise hidden from view. Matter might be made of particles that already live in extra dimensions and feel their effects. A particle moving in an extra dimension would have extra energy, making it look like a heavier version of itself. Measurement of the mass and other properties of these travelers would show what the additional dimensions look like.

If new dimensions exist at the Terascale, then the LHC will discover them; experiments will look for high-energy collisions in which particles literally disappear into an extra dimension. Linear collider experiments could discover still tinier extra dimensions by detecting small disturbances in the behavior of ordinary particles. A linear collider could determine the number of dimensions, their size and shape, and which particles live inside them.