Encyclopedia Cosmology Cosmology Grand Potential

ARTICLE 6 claims 6 theorems

Cosmology Grand Potential

A single thermodynamic function, the pressure, can replace two separate assumptions in deriving how the early universe cools and expands.

The grand potential in cosmology

The grand potential is a quantity from statistical mechanics that packages all the thermodynamic information about a system in one function. In the grand-canonical ensemble, where particles can be exchanged with a reservoir at zero chemical potential, this potential is simply the negative of the pressure, Ω = −P. The entropy density follows as the temperature derivative of the pressure, s = dP/dT, and the energy density is given by the Legendre transform ρ = T·s − P. These definitions are the standard starting point of equilibrium thermodynamics.

In cosmology, this structure matters because the early universe is filled with a hot plasma of relativistic particles. The module in the Recognition Science library shows that if the pressure of this plasma is a differentiable function of temperature, then two famous thermodynamic identities follow automatically. The Euler relation T·s = ρ + P is an algebraic identity of the Legendre transform, and the Gibbs–Duhem relation p′ = s·T′ is just the chain rule applied to s = dP/dT. Neither needs to be assumed as a separate physical postulate; both are consequences of the potential structure.

The concrete plasma realizes this abstract structure. For a gas of massless bosons and fermions, the pressure is computed from the grand partition function as an integral over log kernels. The module derives the closed form P = (π²/90)·(gB + (7/8)·gF)·T⁴, where gB and gF count the bosonic and fermionic degrees of freedom. The 7/8 factor is the same fermionic weight that appears in entropy and energy calculations, and here it emerges from the pressure channel independently. The temperature derivative of this pressure exactly matches the independently derived entropy, confirming that s = dP/dT holds for the plasma as a theorem, not as an input.

With the potential structure in place, the module derives two capstone results. The first is the neutrino dilution ratio (Tν/Tγ)³ = 4/11, which follows from the Friedmann continuity equations plus the existence of a pressure potential, without needing Euler or Gibbs–Duhem as hypotheses. The second is the effective entropy degrees of freedom g*s = 43/11, which appears in the baryon-to-photon ratio prefactor. Both results now rest on a single structural statement: the coupled sector's pressure is a differentiable potential with s = dP/dT, which is the definition of local equilibrium.

The radiation equation of state p = ρ/3 is also derived, not assumed. The Legendre transform T·s − P built from the pressure potential and the entropy reproduces the independently derived energy integrals, forcing the ratio of pressure to energy density to be exactly one third. This closes the loop: the thermodynamic behavior of the early universe plasma follows from the grand-canonical ensemble structure, with the statistical mechanics input confined to the boundary conditions.

THEOREM potential_euler · IndisputableMonolith/Cosmology/GrandPotential.lean
/-- **Euler relation (derived).** `T·s = ρ + P` is an algebraic identity of
the Legendre-transform structure — not an independent equilibrium postulate. -/
theorem potential_euler (P s : ℝ → ℝ) (x : ℝ) :
    x * s x = energyOf P s x + P x := by
  simp only [energyOf]
  ring
THEOREM potential_gibbs_duhem · IndisputableMonolith/Cosmology/GrandPotential.lean
/-- **Gibbs–Duhem relation (derived).** Along any temperature trajectory
`T(t)`, the pressure obeys `p′ = s(T)·T′`: this is the chain rule applied to
`s = dP/dT`, not an independent postulate. -/
theorem potential_gibbs_duhem
    {P s T : ℝ → ℝ} {T' t : ℝ}
    (hP : HasDerivAt P (s (T t)) (T t))
    (hT : HasDerivAt T T' t) :
    HasDerivAt (fun u => P (T u)) (s (T t) * T') t := by
  simpa [Function.comp] using hP.comp t hT
THEOREM plasmaPressure_eq · IndisputableMonolith/Cosmology/GrandPotential.lean
/-- **THEOREM (plasma pressure closed form).** The log-kernel integrals
(`π⁴/45`, `7π⁴/360`, both derived via Mellin transforms) collapse the
pressure to `P = (π²/90)·(g_B + (7/8)·g_F)·T⁴`.  The `7/8` is the same
fermionic weight that appears in entropy and energy — here it comes out of
the pressure channel independently. -/
theorem plasmaPressure_eq (gB gF T : ℝ) :
    plasmaPressure gB gF T = π ^ 2 / 90 * (gB + 7 / 8 * gF) * T ^ 4 := by
  unfold plasmaPressure
  rw [RadiationEntropyRelation.boseLog_integral_value,
    RadiationEntropyRelation.fermiLog_integral_value]
  have hπ : (π : ℝ) ≠ 0 := Real.pi_ne_zero
  field_simp
  ring
THEOREM plasmaPressure_potential · IndisputableMonolith/Cosmology/GrandPotential.lean
/-- **THEOREM (the plasma is a potential fluid).** The temperature derivative
of the statistical-mechanical pressure is *exactly* the `radiationEntropy` of
`NeutrinoDilution` — the object previously built from the independent entropy
integrals `∫σ_B`, `∫σ_F`.  So `s = dP/dT` holds between two independently
derived statistical-mechanical quantities: the potential structure of the
plasma is a theorem, not a definition. -/
theorem plasmaPressure_potential (gB gF x : ℝ) :
    HasDerivAt (fun T => plasmaPressure gB gF T)
      (NeutrinoDilution.radiationEntropy gB gF x) x := by
  rw [NeutrinoDilution.radiationEntropy_eq]
  have hfun : (fun T => plasmaPressure gB gF T)
      = fun T => π ^ 2 / 90 * (gB + 7 / 8 * gF) * T ^ 4 :=
    funext fun T => plasmaPressure_eq gB gF T
  rw [hfun]
  have hpow : HasDerivAt (fun T : ℝ => T ^ 4) (4 * x ^ 3) x := by
    simpa using hasDerivAt_pow 4 x
  have h := hpow.const_mul (π ^ 2 / 90 * (gB + 7 / 8 * gF))
  have hval : π ^ 2 / 90 * (gB + 7 / 8 * gF) * (4 * x ^ 3)
      = 2 * π ^ 2 / 45 * (gB + 7 / 8 * gF) * x ^ 3 := by ring
  rw [hval] at h
  exact h
THEOREM dilution_from_potential · IndisputableMonolith/Cosmology/GrandPotential.lean
/-- **CAPSTONE (dilution from the potential).** `(T_ν/T_γ)³ = 4/11` from:
the coupled sector has a pressure potential with `s = dP/dT` (local
equilibrium, the *only* thermodynamic input), both sectors satisfy their FRW
continuity equations, and the boundary data (plasma dof `2+4 → 2` across e±
annihilation, shared temperature at decoupling).  Compared with
`EntropyConservationFRW.dilution_from_frw`, the Euler and Gibbs–Duhem
hypotheses are gone — they are theorems of the potential structure. -/
theorem dilution_from_potential
    {P s : ℝ → ℝ} {T a Tν : ℝ → ℝ} {sT T' a' Tν' ρν' : ℝ → ℝ}
    {t₁ t₂ : ℝ} {T₁ Tγ αν : ℝ}
    (hTt : ∀ t, T t ≠ 0) (hαν : αν ≠ 0) (hTνt : ∀ t, Tν t ≠ 0)
    (ha₂ : a t₂ ≠ 0) (hTγ : Tγ ≠ 0)
    (hP : ∀ t, HasDerivAt P (s (T t)) (T t))
    (hs : ∀ t, HasDerivAt s (sT t) (T t))
    (hT : ∀ t, HasDerivAt T (T' t) t) (ha : ∀ t, HasDerivAt a (a' t) t)
    (hTν : ∀ t, HasDerivAt Tν (Tν' t) t)
    (hρν : ∀ t, HasDerivAt (fun u => αν * Tν u ^ 4) (ρν' t) t)
    (hcont : ∀ t, a t * (T t * sT t * T' t)
        = -3 * a' t * (energyOf P s (T t) + P (T t)))
    (hcontν : ∀ t, a t * ρν' t
        = -3 * a' t * (αν * Tν t ^ 4 + αν * Tν t ^ 4 / 3))
    (hbefore : s (T t₁) = NeutrinoDilution.radiationEntropy 2 4 T₁)
    (hafter : s (T t₂) = NeutrinoDilution.radiationEntropy 2 0 Tγ)
    (hshare : Tν t₁ = T₁) :
    (Tν t₂ / Tγ) ^ 3 = 4 / 11 := by
  -- Adiabaticity of the coupled sector: derived from the potential structure.
  have hcons : NeutrinoDilution.radiationEntropy 2 4 T₁ * a t₁ ^ 3
      = NeutrinoDilution.radiationEntropy 2 0 Tγ * a t₂ ^ 3 := by
    have h := potential_entropy_constant hTt hP hs hT ha hcont t₁ t₂
    rw [hbefore, hafter] at h
    exact h
  -- Free streaming of the neutrino sector (derived in EntropyConservationFRW).
  have hfree : a t₂ * Tν t₂ = a t₁ * T₁ := by
    have h := EntropyConservationFRW.radiation_aT_constant hαν hTνt hTν ha
      hρν hcontν t₂ t₁
    rw [hshare] at h
    exact h
  exact NeutrinoDilution.dilution_from_entropy_conservation ha₂ hTγ hcons hfree
THEOREM plasma_eos · IndisputableMonolith/Cosmology/GrandPotential.lean
/-- **THEOREM (radiation equation of state derived).** `p = ρ/3` is forced by
the grand-canonical integrals — it is not an input anywhere in the chain. -/
theorem plasma_eos (gB gF T : ℝ) :
    plasmaPressure gB gF T = plasmaEnergy gB gF T / 3 := by
  rw [plasmaEnergy_eq, plasmaPressure_eq]
  ring

What this page does not claim

The grand-canonical form of the plasma pressure at the boundaries is assumed, not derived, though its integrals are. The Friedmann equations themselves are not derived in this module; they are discharged separately. Sector decoupling and the boundary identifications (dof 2+4 → 2, shared temperature) are model inputs, not theorems.

Verify this page

Every tagged claim above names its theorem. To check one yourself rather than trust this page, elaborate the source module with Lean 4 and audit its axiom basis:

$ lake env lean IndisputableMonolith/Cosmology/GrandPotential.lean
expected axiom basis: [propext, Classical.choice, Quot.sound] (the Lean kernel's standard three; no RS-specific axioms)

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