The Spaton: The Fundamental Unit of Space

This work introduces the spaton as the minimal physical unit of the Spatum substrate,
treated as a physical medium constituting space itself. The objective of this article is not to
present dynamical models, detailed equations, or phenomenological fits, but to establish
ontological definitions, regime structure, and operational relations that any subsequent
development within the Spatum theory must obey.
The spaton is defined as an indivisible unit of local space with a continuous volumetric state
bounded by finite physical limits. Three volumetric regimes—maximum compression
(Vmin), a dynamic coherence regime (Vdyn), and maximum expansion (Vmax)—organize
the stability of coherent propagation, the emergence of time as accumulated delay, and the
operational definition of the speed of light as a coherence transmission rate. The present
text remains strictly foundational; applications and empirical programs are deferred to
modular future works.