History Main / MinovskyPhysics

The TropeNamer is the {{Anime}} series ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam''. Creator/YoshiyukiTomino wanted to write a RealRobot anime. However, anyone remotely familiar with either engineering or military tactics will tell you that such devices are almost impossible to use effectively; a bipedal platform is needlessly complicated, hard to properly armor, and the easiest thing to shoot at on a battlefield. Enter the Minovsky Particle: an EMP-like, sensor-jamming, delicate-electronics wrecking PlotDevice that not only renders all ranged targeting and guided missiles useless, but requires [[{{Unobtainium}} Helium-3]] to produce. Consequently, humans had to [[IWantMyJetpack go to space]] to get Helium-3, fight old-school, close-combat battles using systems capable of tricky microgravity maneuvering, and eventually standardize the technology to simplify maintenance. The result? A world full of HumongousMecha -- which, far from being contrived, seems like a natural evolution of military technology ''in light of'' the Minovsky Particle. And what's truly elegant is the metafiction: from a {{Doylist}} view, Mobile Suits made the particle necessary; but from the {{Watsonian}} or InUniverse view, it's ''the particle'' that made ''Mobile suits'' necessary.

* [[Franchise/{{Transformers}} Energon]] is a borderline case; while it was given many more powers than it used to have when it was made the focus of ''Anime/TransformersEnergon'', it shares certain properties that remain constant. It is an energy source for the Transformers that come in both solid and liquid forms, has PowerGlows, and goes kaboom quite nicely when manhandled. In its natural state, though, it is unstable and gives off radiation that's hurtful to Transformers in large concentrations (though confusingly organic material is generally immune to it).

* Creator/AndyWeir started out writing the hardest of hard sci-fi with Literature/TheMartian where even the orbital physics are so real fans could accurately calculate when his book is set. It became a bit softer in {{Literature/Artemis}} but his first "Minovsky particle" is the "Astrophage" in Literature/ProjectHailMary which has a few very well specified properties (ability to absorb huge amounts of energy and store it as mass, constant temperature etc.) that are highly plot-relevant. The "Xenonite" material that comes up in the story also counts.

** Dilithium crystals are a fundamental aspect of the Star Trek universe, as all Federation starships use them for their FasterThanLight engines. They have basically one important property, they are able to safely interact with antimatter and produce a controlled reaction. They cannot be [[MatterReplicator replicated]] and can decay in quality, which adds to some tension in either repairing the imperfections or finding new dilithiun sources. [[note]]Early episodes said that lithium served this purpose. The science advisor recommended it be changed since it was a known substance with known properties, and relatively common on top of that. Dilithium is possible in theory, but not in crystaline form[[/note]]

** Blades aren't the only thing that can use ether energy. Some substances can block or adsorb it, which can choke Blades of the energy necessary to fight. While the technology is in its infancy, using machines to harvest Ether energy to perform work exists as a proof-of-concept.

* In ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'', everyone possesses "Aura" - a sort of energy field created and powered by the soul. Aura itself is loosely defined, but it has a set of internally-consistent effects. For example, it projects a defensive field around the body when active that deflects most incoming energy, though some force penetrates it and can knock a person around or cause pain. It can be used to power superhuman feats such as massive leaps, lifting enormous weights, or striking armored machines or monsters with melee weapons or fists. It can be channeled into weapons, armor, and attacks, which [[MySuitIsAlsoSuper explains the lack of clothing damage]]. It is also used to power Semblances, which are unique powers specific to each individual, which also adhere to their own internal rules per person. If someone's Aura is depleted, they lose most of it's offensive and defensive benefits, and they cannot use their Semblance anymore until it regenerates.

* [[{{Transformers}} Energon]] is a borderline case; while it was given many more powers than it used to have when it was made the focus of ''Anime/TransformersEnergon'', it shares certain properties that remain constant. It is an energy source for the Transformers that come in both solid and liquid forms, has PowerGlows, and goes kaboom quite nicely when manhandled. In its natural state, though, it is unstable and gives off radiation that's hurtful to Transformers in large concentrations (though confusingly organic material is generally immune to it).

* Creator/AndyWeir started out writing the hardest of hard sci-fi with Literature/TheMartian where even the orbital physics are so real fans could accurately calculate when his book is set. It became a bit softer in {{Literature/Artemis}} but his first "Minovsky particle" is the "Astrophage" in Literature/ProjectHailMary which has a few very well specified properties (ability to absorb huge amounts of energy and store it as mass, constant temperature etc.) that are highly plot-relevant

* ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'': The [[BeehiveBarrier AT Fields]] generated by EVAs and Angels function this way; since conventional arms can't pierce them, EVAs became necessary as the only thing that could break through.

Aside from pure flavoring, having some strict mechanics behind the {{Verse}} prevents it from easily slipping into pitfalls full of MisappliedPhlebotinum and thus helps to keep the setting to the strict side of the MohsScaleOfScienceFictionHardness; in fact, settings with Minovsky Physics can be LikeRealityUnlessNoted, especially if the particles are worked into the {{Anthropic Principle}}s underpinning the story. For authors, this may be viewed as a SelfImposedChallenge or a way to defuse the temptation of sneaking in NewPowersAsThePlotDemands and/or PlotInducedStupidity.

* In Robert Forward's ''Literature/DragonsEgg'', nearly all of the human technology that doesn't already exist today is based on magnetic monopoles. Given that ''Dragon's Egg'' is [[MohsScaleOfScienceFictionHardness diamond-hard science fiction]], you can bet that these particles are [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_monopole well known by the Real Life scientific community]][[note]]While it's not known if they actually exist, physicists figured out their expected properties and there's an ongoing search for them[[/note]], and Forward takes great care to explain the physics behind the technology employing them. When the Cheela develop technology, micro-black holes are nearly omnipresent in it. Of course, for a space-faring civilization whose members ''explode'' in a low enough gravity (as in, less than a few hundred thousands times Earth's), portable black holes are pretty much a must.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Chaos}}'' (which is ''[[ScienceFantasy all over]]'' the MohsScaleOfSciFiHardness, one section will seem to be trying to adhere ''almost'' rigidly to {{real life}} laws of physics, the next will be almost unmitigated fantasy—though this is most likely [[{{hand waved}} explained away]] by its nature as a {{scrapbook story}} with each section being [[DirectLineToTheAuthor ostensibly]] written by a different {{unreliable narrator}}) has the "scalon", the carrier particle (really particle-wave…okay, just wave) of a fifth fundamental force called the "divine force", or more commonly, the "chaotic force". The setup here is sort of similar to the ''Franchise/MassEffect'' example below: the Chaotic Force is a fundamental force, it's sort of like a mixture of electromagnetism [[{{this is your premise on drugs}} on steroids]] and [[{{anti gravity}} gravity in reverse]]. It conveniently answers a few of the questions plaguing physics today, such as, what is dark energy? It's the chaotic force! What gives matter its mass? It's the chaotic force! Because scalons (the ''Chaos'' counterpart of the [[{{magical particle accelerator}} Higgs boson]], also known as ''scal''ar waves or torsion waves) can [[{{FTL Travel}} move at superluminal speeds]] and [[{{reality warper}} warp up space and time themselves]] (in fact, they essentially ''are'' just quanta of warped spacetime), there are [[{{sufficiently advanced technology}} really very few limits placed upon what they can do]], and the various types of powers they enable, referred to collectively as "[[{{shout out}} chaos bending]]", [[{{clarkes third law}} for all intents and purposes, are simply functional magic with a sci-fi technobabble explanation]].

* Creator/AndyWeir started out writing the hardest of hard sci-fi with Literature/TheMartian where even the orbital physics are so real fans could accurately calculate when his book is set. It became a bit softer in {{Literature/Artemis}} but his first "Minnovsky particle" is the "Astrophage" in Literature/ProjectHailMary which has a few very well specified properties (ability to absorb huge amounts of energy and store it as mass, constant temperature etc.) that are highly plot-relevant

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* ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'' really likes to go crazy with "fonons"

** Stargates only transmit matter in single, continuous pieces. An object will only be sent through once it's fully entered the event horizon. The corollary to this is that an object extending through the event horizon will force the wormhole to remain open until either its power is cut at the source, or the 38 minute window is reached.[[note]]As with anything that goes wrong with the stargate, the results of this are [[PortalCut not pretty for the object]].[[/note]]
** Once an object enters a wormhole, in order to come out on the other side intact there has to be enough physical room to do so, otherwise it goes splat against whatever is blocking the Stargate. The SGC takes advantage of this with the Iris, which closes to form a barrier a few micrometers from the event horizon. If they have an incoming wormhole they can close the iris after it forms and anyone or anything trying to come through without permission gets smeared into paste much like a bug hitting the windshield of a speeding car. The unstable vortex (the "whoosh") of a gate opening helps prevent [[TeleFrag telefragging]] of things going through the gate as it disintegrates any solid material it encounters. [[note]]Also not pretty if someone happens to be standing too close in front of a gate when it activates.[[/note]]

* The "Holtzman Effect" is used in the Franchise/{{Dune}} universe to explain many elements of that setting's FeudalFuture. This singular effect is responsible for faster than light travel, personal barriers that make firearms useless, and the ability to defy gravity.

* [[http://www.orionsarm.com/xcms.php?r=oaeg-view-article&egart_uid=48630634d2591 Magmatter]] from ''WebOriginal/OrionsArm'' is an incredibly detailed version heavily based on real scientific speculation.

* Found in the form of Dust (or, more properly, Rusakov particles, named for their creator) in the ''Literature/HisDarkMaterials'' trilogy. Dust, an elementary (read: indivisible, subatomic) particle, can only be seen either when vast quantities are for some reason all brought together, or through special emulsions (which [[BambooTechnology can be improvised using bamboo and seedpods from a different universe. Seriously.]]) Dust's most interesting quality, though, is that it attracts itself to sentient beings - anything made by humans to aid in thought and observation will attract Dust, such as a ruler, and Dust also attracts itself to people - adults especially, and the wiser the better. It has been implied that Dust is essentially meant to be the exchange particle (boson) for consciousness or conscious thought.

* In ''Anime/GundamBuildFighters'', the Plavsky Particles animate the plastic used to make ''Gundam'' model kits, as well as allowing them to produce realistic weapon effects like bullets, missiles, beam blades, and even explosions. While there ''are'' rigid rules, the writers themselves occasionally seem to forget them; it's said that Plavsky Particles only react with the specific type of plastic used in Gundam model kits, yet later in the show people are seen to modify the plastic by grinding it down and mixing steel powder in it to increase its strength to scratch building whole units without any Gunpla parts(and Bandai does not sell Putty). The earlier Zaku Amazing example does not really stand because eventhough it is modified by a tank model, the main frame(the Zaku) is still a Gunpla.

* Unexpected as this trope may be in a Creator/MichaelBay film, ''Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction'' goes in this direction with [[{{Unobtainium}} Transformium]], providing an explanation of how transforming robots, which seem to have traits of both machines and biological entities, can exist. The short of it is that Transformers are built out of "living metal" protoform forged by alien creators out of organic matter, whose "geome" was in turn was cracked, reprogrammed, manufactured, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and trademarked]] by a [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt human corporation]] as Transformium, allowing them to create stuff that transforms into whatever they program. Note that it exists in limited supply (if it can't be created outright, it must be [[HumanResources harvested from other robots]]), and the fact it requires organic planetary matter to exist provides brings implications of HostileTerraforming that form up part of the movie's conflict.

* Unexpected as this trope may be in a Creator/MichaelBay film, ''Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction'' goes in this direction with Transformium, suddenly providing an explanation of how transforming robots, which seem to have traits of both machines and biological entities, can exist.

Not to be confused with [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minkowski_space Minkowski spacetime]], a theoretical construct in real-world physics that is currently used as the mainstream model for the shape and topology of our Universe (especially in formulations of Einstein's General Relativity).

* Wiki/TheOtherWiki has plenty of details on how the Minovsky Particle works: [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Century_technology#Minovsky_physics]]

** Alchemists from Amestris learned alchemy from the sage from the east ([[spoiler:Father]]) and think that their alchemy uses tectonic power. Alchemists from Xing learned alkahestry from the sage from the west ([[spoiler:Hohenheim]]) and use ley lines. Xingese alchemists insinuate that the alchemists from Amestris don't have the full story and that something is "wrong" with their alchemy, and fans speculated that this was because Amestrian alchemy was powered by [[spoiler:Father's stone]]. It's revealed that alchemists from Amestris [[spoiler:do use tectonic power, but Father can limit or even shut off access to it by putting his philosopher's stone in the way as a barrier. This creeps out the Xingese, who can sense the souls from the stone writhing underneath the earth's surface.]] This is made much clearer in ''Brotherhood'', where a piece of exposition explains the purpose of the nationwide reverse transmutation circle. It's there in the manga, the explanation just isn't as explicit.

* ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam00'' has its own version in the form of GN ("Gundam Nucleus") Particles. Basically they do all the same things as Minovsky particles (produced via an exotic type of reactor, jam radar, allow non-aerodynamic machines to fly, and make beam weapons possible), along with a few new tricks (increasing the strength of armor and the cutting power of physical blades when they're impregnated with the particles). In the second season, GN Particles go from Minovsky Particles to [[GreenRocks magical pixie dust]], capable of performing such feats as [[EvolutionaryLevels evolving a person]], magically healing dying people, and {{teleport|ation}}ing mobile suits at will]]. While these changes are essentially unexplained the series drops hints of it in absolutely every episode, and some of the more "ridiculous" effects are simply extrapolations of previously observed properties. [[spoiler: Basically, the 'true' (green colored) GN Particles had always been magical pixie dust in a sense but humans and technology didn't catch up for all of fifty-two episodes. Aeolia's convoluted Master Plan was intended to facilitate this catching up before his created assistants decided to go off on their own tangent.]]

* ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam00'' has its own version in the form of GN ("Gundam Nucleus") Particles. Basically they do all the same things as Minovsky particles (produced via an exotic type of reactor, jam radar, allow non-aerodynamic machines to fly, and make beam weapons possible), along with a few new tricks (increasing the strength of armor and the cutting power of physical blades when they're impregnated with the particles). In the second season, GN Particles go from Minovsky Particles to [[GreenRocks magical pixie dust]], capable of performing such feats as [[EvolutionaryLevels evolving a person]], magically healing dying people, and [[TeleportersAndTransporters teleporting mobile suits at will]]. While these changes are essentially unexplained the series drops hints of it in absolutely every episode, and some of the more "ridiculous" effects are simply extrapolations of previously observed properties. [[spoiler: Basically, the 'true' (green colored) GN Particles had always been magical pixie dust in a sense but humans and technology didn't catch up for all of fifty-two episodes. Aeolia's convoluted Master Plan was intended to facilitate this catching up before his created assistants decided to go off on their own tangent.]]

** [[{{Unobtainium}} Gundanium]] also merits a passing mention here, being an unspecified alloy that can only be manufactured by the Space Colonies. This sounds unlikely, but [[AluminiumChristmasTrees in actual fact is quite plausible]], as liquid metal behaves very differently in microgravity. On the other hand, the official description of Gundanium says it contains several non-ferrous elements, something which isn't possible for a true alloy.