2026-05-14 カリフォルニア工科大学（Caltech）
Credit: AI-generated art by Clifford Cheung
Artwork illustrating how string theory emerges from a few simple mathematical assumptions about particle collisions. Image credit: AI-generated art by Clifford Cheung.
＜関連情報＞
- https://www.caltech.edu/about/news/string-theory-emerges-from-almost-nothing
- https://journals.aps.org/prl/accepted/10.1103/cw4p-cqh7
ほぼ無から生まれた弦 Strings from almost nothing
Clifford Cheung and Grant N. Remmen and Francesco Sciotti and Michele Tarquini
Physical Review Letters Accepted: 2 April, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/cw4p-cqh7
Abstract
We argue that string theory emerges inevitably from a few simple assumptions about physical scattering. Consistency alone requires that all tree-level four-point scattering amplitudes exhibit vanishing residues at prescribed values of the momentum transfer. Assuming ultrasoft high-energy behavior, we then prove that the space of minimally consistent amplitudes, whose residues exhibit these mandated zeros and nothing more, collapses uniquely onto the celebrated Veneziano and Virasoro-Shapiro amplitudes of string theory. Similar logic also applies to five-point scattering.
