Author(s)

Richard A. Hutchin

Optical Physics Company, Calabasas, CA, USA.

Annual variations of 1000 - 3000 ppm (peak-to-valley) have been observed in the decay rates of 8 radionuclides over a 20 year span by six organizations on three continents, including beta decay (weak interaction) and alpha decay (strong interaction). In searching for a common cause, we hypothesized that small variations in Planck’s constant might account for the observed synchronized variations in strong and weak decays. If so, then h would be a maximum around January-February of each year and a minimum around July-August of each year based on the 20 years of radioactive decay data. To test this hypothesis, a purely electromagnetic experiment was set up to search for the same annual variations. From Jun 14, 2011 to Jan 29, 2014 (941 days), annual variations in tunneling voltage through 5 parallel Esaki tunnel diodes were recorded. It found annual variations of 826 ppm peak-to-valley peaking around Jan 1. These variations lend support to the hypothesis that there is a gradient in h of about 21 ppm across the Earth’s orbit.

Planck’s Constant, Variable Radioactive Decay Rate, Variable Plank’s Constant

Hutchin, R. (2016) Experimental Evidence for Variability in Planck’s Constant. Optics and Photonics Journal, 6, 124-137. doi: 10.4236/opj.2016.66015.