Artificially-Induced Vacuum Decay: Theoretical Consequences for The Solar System and Beyond

NOTE: This version contains several formatting errors. Please refer to the updated version for the revised form of the paper.

Vacuum decay is defined as a theoretical / speculative concept in physics that refers to the instability of the zero-point, or vacuum, state of the quantum field, derived from the potentially limitless "lowering" of the potential energy state of the field by processes like quantum tunneling. It suggests that if any particle in the universe, by chance, decreased into a more stable, lower vacuum state, a "bubble" of the "contaminated" potential energy held by the newly modified Higgs boson would spread at the speed of light at every direction on space (forming a perfect sphere), and the universe would, eventually, undergo a radical phase transition down to the very fabric of physics and chemistry themselves. This phase transition is called a “false vacuum decay", referencing the idea that the vacuum of our universe is a “false” one. This brief article will primarily explore the theoretical consequences that an artificially-induced vacuum decay, by some arbitrary unknown process or technology, would have on the Solar System and the universe as a whole if it were to be initiated on the terrestrial north pole.