Subatomic Formation Timeline

The Planck Era begins with a dense amount of energy compacted within a “planck length,” (about the size of a dime) making it unstable.

Radiation fills the Universe: 10^-12 & 10^-10 seconds

At this point, the big bang is said to have commenced. At the end of the Planck era, the universe was left in a small (less than the size of a dime), hot, dense, and unstable state. With the vacuum energy around it and the great dense and instability of energy drove the expansion of the universe.

Quarks versus Anti-Quarks (The battle of matter): 10^-11 seconds

As the universe expanded, the temperature of the radiation lowered due to the decrease of density and increase of area. As a result, particles and anti-particles are created (by colliding radiation waves), which, in turn, collided to form energy (making a mini-big-bang) and causing the formation of new particles. Since matter was always turning into energy, and energy into matter, there was no dominance in matter. Since particles and anti-particles were canceling each other out, no matter was formed. However, as the universe continues to expand and cool, the collisions between the particles and their anti-particles decrease, causing matter to last longer. As well, when the radiation is forming the particles and the antiparticles, it was no longer forming them at the speed it was before, and there was a smaller chance of the formation of both counterparts, due to less energy. As a result, more particles, or quarks, are formed, over antiparticles, or anti-quarks, allowing for lasting matter to exist.

Weak nuclear bosons become massive: 10^-10seconds

As the universe continues to expand and cool, bosons, which transmits the weak force, become very heavy, gaining mass through a process known as spontaneous symmetry breaking, which occurs at a definite energy scale which is equal to the energy of the weak nuclear force. Above this amount of energy, the bosons are mass-less and are like photons, transmitting an electromagnetic force between electrons and protons, and like the gluon that transmits the strong nuclear force between quarks. Below the energy quantum, the bosons are heavy and large, allowing the weak nuclear force to act over a very small distance, about 1016cm (1/1000 the size of a nucleus)

Quarks and gluons are confined: 10^-4seconds

At this point, the universe has expanded and cooled to a point where quarks and gluons no longer travel as fast as they once did, and they become confined in mesons (pimeson) and baryons (proton and neutron) forming new particles. There is a point in which, if the particles are heated to the average temperature of the radiation prior to this time known as the deconfinement temperature, the mesons and baryons would break apart back into quarks and gluons

Proton to Neutron ratio is fixed: 1 second

Prior to this time, neutrons and protons were rapidly changing into each other with the absorption and emission of neutrinos. Now that the universe has expanded and cooled down, this process has slowed down, and the formation of a neutron, which required a proton to be hit with an electron anti-neutrino required more energy than was available. The formation of neutrons were decreased. However, the process of the neutron decaying and releasing the anti-neutrino still existed and the rate remains constant. As a result, there was a seven to one ratio of protons to neutrons. This explains why there is such an abundance of hydrogen as only one proton and no neutrons are required in the nucleus, and thereby using the excess protons. As well, there is less of other elements which have a one to one ratio of protons to neutrons in their nucleus (isotopes vary slightly)

Protons and Neutron Form Nuclei: 100 seconds

Nuclei formation occurred at this point as the average temperature was low enough, due to an expanding universe, so that the protons and neutrons were traveling slow enough that they can come within 10-13 cm contact with each other so that strong forces can hold them together.

Matter Dominates over radiation: 10,000 years

With the continuing expansion and cooling of the universe, there is a decrease of the energy density of radiation as it forms more particles. However, particle collisions are more rare, and re-form less radiation. Eventually, there is a point where there is a dominance in matter over radiation which remains as cosmic background.

Protons and electrons from hydrogen: 500,000 years

As the universe continues to expand, electrons now move slower and can no longer escape the forces of the nuclei, and they are forced to orbit, therefore the first elements are formed: hydrogen, helium, and lithium.

Hydrogen gas makes first stars: one billion years

As the universe cools further, and more and more electrons being captured by the nuclei, more hydrogen is being formed. As a result, gravity begins to act on them, causing them to collide, and ignite through hydrogen fusion to begin to formed the first of stars.

A “protostar” is formed when due to compression of a cloud of hydrogen molecules and intercellular matter; this birthplace is called a nebula. There are different types of nebula. An Emission nebula, such as the Orion nebula, glows brightly because the gas in it is energized by the stars that have already formed within it. In a Reflection nebula, starlight reflects on the grains of dust in a nebula; in Pleiades Cluster there is a reflection nebula. Moreover, a Dark nebula is a dense cloud of molecular hydrogen, which partially or completely absorbs the light from stars behind. The Horsehead Nebula in Orion is one example. Finally, there is a Planetary nebula, which is the outer layer of a star that are lost when the star changes from a read giant to a white dwarf (refer to these sub-sections for definitions). A star is formed as this compression continues leading to an increase of temperature, which causes hydrogen molecules to disintegrate in to hydrogen atoms and eventually, hydrogen electrons separate from the protons or ionize. The final substance formed is called plasma. Moreover, as temperature increases, helium atoms begin to ionize and the cloud of intercellular matter, thus, compresses to approximately 1/4000th of the size. The compression causes the center of this cloud to heat up to such extreme temperatures that nuclear fusion begins and a core of dense matter is formed. A star is now born.

Stars produce heavier elements: 2-13 billion years

The heavier elements are formed in stars which go through a process known as nucleur fusion. In nuclear fusion, the star consumes various types of fuels, which releases a large amount of energy. The expanding force of the fusion reactions and the compressing force of gravity to the dense core, keep the star in balance as they are opposing forces. This balance also determines the shape of the star, if forces are stronger, the star is larger, and thus, more fuels are being used. Scientists have given different sizes of stars different names. For example, the supergiant is the largest of all stars. Since in larger stars nuclear fusion occurs at a faster pace, Supergiants can only live for fifty million years. Once the stars explode, they release these elements into the universe. Carbon is now available for life.