Geometric Foundations of Matter and Electrodynamics: Covariant Mass, Solitonic Fermions, and Emergent (ℏ, G, e, c) from Pre-Geometric Curvature

This paper extends the recently published formulation of Chronon Field Theory (CFT), a covariant and background–independent framework that models spacetime as a foliation generated by a smooth timelike field Φ µ. The field defines causal structure and an emergent Lorentzian metric, within which a covariant mass–energy density ρ = TµνΦ µΦµ provides a unified and positive notion of inertial and gravitational mass. Matter arises as topologically stable w = 1 solitons carrying spin- 1 2 and Fermi–Dirac statistics through a Finkelstein–Rubinstein/Berry holonomy mechanism, while an emergent U(1) gauge sector originates from chronon holonomy, yielding Maxwell dynamics and a massless photon as a curvature Goldstone mode. The fundamental constants of Nature are shown to be geometric invariants rather than postulates: Planck’s constant corresponds to the symplectic area of chronon curvature, Newton’s constant arises from induced–gravity scaling, and the elementary charge and light speed follow from emergent gauge and metric symmetries. On stabilized domains, the theory reproduces Einstein–Maxwell dynamics at leading order, with controlled higher–derivative corrections consistent with observational bounds. CFT thereby provides a unified geometric origin for (ℏ, G, e, c) and a concrete realization of quantum behavior as a condensed phase of temporal curvature. Observable signatures include achromatic birefringence, exchange–phase interferometry, and characteristic soliton spectra. This work develops the geometric and Abelian sectors; subsequent papers extend the formalism to non–Abelian holonomies and QCD–like dynamics.