Someone recently pinged me on Twitter and asked about what Portal Transporters are, and why I thought they were so great.  Well, I figure that this blog post will do a lot to explain that.  First off, while the concept behind Portal Transporters is not new to the Sci-fi realm, my iteration is.  However, it still relies heavily on real world science and scientific theory.

In sci-fi history and canon, there are a lot of different transporter systems designed and used to move a person from one place to another without having to physically travel there.  In Star Trek they use what is known as a particle transporter.  This basically turns all your atoms to energy, shoots it across space, and then turns that energy back into matter as it reassembles you.

This type of transporter also tends to be the most popular and common among sci-fi writers.  While it takes many different forms, they're all approximately the same.  A portal transporter on the other hand does not disassemble the object or person to be transported.  Instead, it relies on a theory called "Duality".  In short, Duality is the theory where you can exist in two different places at the same time.

So how does a portal transporter use this theory?  Well, I think the simplest way to understand this is to explain the transport cycle.  To start, the machine first creates a sphere of energy that isolates the target individual or item from the normal space around them.  It then creates an identical sphere at the target destination.  The person or object being transported is then briefly made to exist in both locations at the same time.

To complete the transport this state of duality is removed and the person or object once again only exists in one location.  In this case it's the target destination.  The spheres are then removed, and the transport is complete.  So in the end, you're not disassembled, atomized or anything.  There's no signal to mess with, as everything goes through inter-dimensional space, so there's no worry about being lost in space.

Also, the inherent safety of portal transporting is quite interesting.  Since Duality has to be forced, should something happen and the transport fails part way through the cycle, Duality will fail and you'll either find yourself at the source location still, or at your target destination.  There would be no middle ground.  You'd either be here, or there, period.  So even if the transporter somehow fails, you have no risk of dying.  Well, unless someone's trying to portal you to safety and the transport fails, leaving you in harms way.

So, that's the basic explanation of the technology.  I hope this helps everyone understand it.