Of Particular Significance

What Would the Particles of Nature Be Like if the Higgs Field Were Zero?

Picture of POSTED BY Matt Strassler

POSTED BY Matt Strassler

ON 08/11/2011

A couple of days ago I posted an elementary article on the elementary particles — an introduction to the particles of the Standard Model of Particle Physics, focusing on how they interact with one another.

Now I have an article for you on how drastically the particles and forces would be rearranged if the Higgs field were zero  in nature.   It’s pretty remarkable, actually, if you’ve never seen it before!  A surprising underlying organization emerges in this imaginary zero-Higgs-field world.  And by looking at how things differ between the real world and this imaginary one, it is possible to glean some insights into how the Higgs field is able to give mass to the known particles, and how it thereby determines the properties of the weak nuclear force.    And you can also learn about a number of interesting issues that continue to puzzle particle physicists.

Hope you enjoy it!

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2 Responses

  1. Thank for all your great articles I am reading. I feel very fortunate to find many great info about Higgs field and particles written by you. It seems to me that you like some reading recommendations about the Great Depression; if so, I suggest Blogs by Paul Krugman. Again thank for your great writings about elementary particles. I check your website daily.

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