Physics is a scientific discipline that explores the fundamental laws and structures of nature, striving to describe and explain the universe we inhabit using mathematical language.
Physicists continually propose new theories and experiments to test or overturn old theories, thereby deepening and refining our understanding of the natural world.
Throughout the history of physics, there have been significant discoveries and breakthroughs that have changed our perspectives and comprehension of the universe, while also greatly impacting technological advancement and societal development.
For example, Newton’s law of gravitation, Einstein’s theory of relativity, Bohr’s atomic model, and Feynman’s quantum electrodynamics. Among these important discoveries and breakthroughs is a very special and mysterious particle known as “God Particle”, or more accurately, Higgs Boson.
So, what is this particle? How was it discovered? What impact does it have on physics and humanity?
More and more scientists are interested in the search for the “God Particle” in physics, as it may explain the fundamental principles of the universe. (Photo ZME).
What is the God Particle?
The God Particle is a fundamental particle that interacts with the Higgs field, generating mass for other particles. So, what is a fundamental particle? A fundamental particle is the smallest unit that makes up matter, which cannot be divided and is not composed of other particles.
There are two known types of fundamental particles: fermions and bosons.
Fermions are particles with half-integer spin that follow Fermi-Dirac statistics; they exhibit exclusion principles and cannot occupy the same quantum state at the same time. Fermions include quarks and leptons (such as protons, neutrons, electrons, etc.), which make up atomic nuclei and shells, as well as gluons that mediate strong interactions.
Bosons are particles with integer spin that follow Bose-Einstein statistics; they can cluster together and occupy the same quantum state at the same time. Bosons include photons, which mediate electromagnetic forces, weak forces, and gravitational forces; W and Z bosons; and the graviton (yet to be discovered); and the Higgs boson, which interacts with the Higgs field.
Many scientists in the past believed that the Higgs boson is a particle or a collection of particles that form the fundamental basis of mass. (Photo Zhihu).
So, what is the Higgs field? The Higgs field is a field that permeates the entire universe and can be understood as a viscous, invisible medium through which different particles experience varying degrees of resistance and, therefore, acquire different masses.
Without the Higgs field, all particles would have no mass, like photons, and could not form atoms, molecules, and matter. Therefore, the Higgs boson is referred to as the “God Particle,” and it shapes the entire universe.
The Higgs boson was hypothetically proposed in 1964 by Peter Higgs and several other physicists, who sought to explain why the W and Z bosons, which carry the weak nuclear force, have mass, while the massless photon carries the electromagnetic force. They proposed the Higgs mechanism, which uses spontaneous symmetry breaking to grant mass to fundamental particles without violating the standard model.
The hypothesis from the 1960s posited that the Higgs boson is the source of mass for fundamental particles. The Higgs boson is generated from the hypothesized quantum field, also known as the Higgs field, which provides the necessary momentum for particles to acquire their mass. (Photo: Zhihu)
How was the God Particle discovered?
The Higgs boson is a type of particle that is very difficult to observe because it requires extremely high energy to create and decays quickly into other particles. Physicists spent decades searching for its traces until 2012, when scientists at the Large Hadron Collider built by CERN observed a new boson with mass and properties similar to the “God Particle.”
On March 14, 2013, CERN officially announced the discovery of the Higgs boson and confirmed the existence of the Higgs field.
The European Hadron Collider is currently the world’s most powerful particle accelerator, located 100 meters beneath the border of Switzerland and France, with a circumference of 27 km, and it can create high-energy particle fragments. By analyzing these particle fragments, physicists can explore the properties and interactions of fundamental particles, as well as what happened to the universe after the Big Bang. (Photo: NBC).
To discover the Higgs boson, physicists needed to conduct tens of millions of collision experiments at the Large Hadron Collider and employ complex data analysis methods to sift through events that might contain the Higgs boson signal. This was an incredibly challenging and time-consuming task, requiring collaboration and effort from thousands of scientists and engineers worldwide.
The discovery of the God Particle is a significant event in the world of physics. It not only validates the Standard Model, the most successful and comprehensive theory of fundamental particles, but also reveals one of nature’s deepest mysteries: the mechanism of mass generation.
The Standard Model is a mathematical framework that describes fundamental particles and their interactions (excluding gravity). This model can explain most known physical phenomena and predict many new physical phenomena.
The Standard Model comprises 12 types of fermions, 4 types of gauge bosons, 1 type of Higgs boson, and their corresponding antiparticles, totaling 28 types of fundamental particles. In the Standard Model, the Higgs particle is the only one that has not been experimentally observed, making it the final and most elusive piece of the Standard Model.
The discovery of the Higgs boson means that the Standard Model has been fully supported by experimental evidence, and it also signifies that our understanding of fundamental particles has reached a new level.
Besides its significant impact on physics itself, the discovery of the God Particle has profound implications for human society. To uncover the God Particle, physicists have developed many advanced instruments and devices, such as the Large Hadron Collider, detectors, computers, networks, etc. These instruments and devices are not only used in fundamental research but also in other fields such as medicine, engineering, education, and more…
