by Sean Carroll
dark matter
and “axions,” 169
detecting, 25, 64
discovery of, 244–45
and the early universe, 245–47
Feynman diagram of, 251
and gravity, 64, 143, 247–48
and the Higgs discovery, 268
and the Higgs portal, 249–52, 251
and PAMELA experiment, 200–201
and physics beyond the Standard Model, 17, 252–54
and supersymmetry, 190, 261
and WIMPs, 247–49
data collection, 110–14. See also statistical analysis
Dawson, Sally, 174
decay of particles
discovery of, 170
and evidence for the Higgs boson, 95–96
and field theory, 131–33
Higgs decay modes, 54, 170–74, 171, 173, 184–88
and neutrino emission, 46–48
neutron decay, 46–47, 131–34, 230
and particle detectors, 95–97
de Hevesy, George, 209–10
Democritus, 10, 279
Deutsch, David, 126
Dirac, Paul, 44
Discover magazine, 181, 198–99
Dorigo, Tommaso, 198
down quarks
and atomic structure, 10–11, 28
charge of, 50, 294
interaction with Higgs boson, 143
and particle spin, 291
and quark generations, 51
and resting value of Higgs field, 146
and weak interactions, 32, 158
D Zero experiment, 199–200
early universe, 245–47
The Economist, 200
Einstein, Albert
and “aether” theory, 139
and energy/mass equivalency, 34
and energy/wavelength connection, 126–27
and general relativity, 14
and Lederman, 19
“miraculous year,” 13
and the photoelectric effect, 127, 164
and quantum mechanics, 128
and special relativity, 123
and speed of light, 196, 197
and theological implications of physics, 21, 22–23
and vacuum energy, 221, 255
Eisner, Hal, 135, 146
electric charge. See charge of particles
electricity, 14, 121, 213–14
electromagnetic calorimeters, 107, 107–8, 109
electromagnetic force
and atomic structure, 42–43
electromagnetic fields, 33, 120–22
and infinite-answer problem, 229
and local symmetries, 154
and observable macroscopic forces, 31
and particle charge, 29
and particle detector findings, 104–5
and particle spin, 291
and quantum field theory, 33
and superconductivity, 211
and symmetry, 152, 213
unification with weak force, 231
electron neutrinos, 48–49, 159, 257, 291
electrons
and atomic structure, 10–11, 29, 41, 42–43
and Higgs decay modes, 173
interaction with Higgs boson, 143
and linear accelerators, 66
and mass, 60, 145
and neutron decay, 133–34
and particle detectors, 104, 108–10, 109
and particle spin, 129, 285, 288, 291
and resting value of Higgs field, 146
and size of atoms, 145–46
and solidity of matter, 28
and supersymmetry, 257
and symmetry, 149, 159
and weak interactions, 159
electron volt (eV) measure, 55, 59, 59
electroweak phase transition, 161
electroweak theory, 257–61
electroweak unification, 232–34, 235
elementary particles, 8–11, 27. See also specific particles
elements, 10
Ellis, John, 174, 183, 191
energy/mass equivalency, 34, 57–61, 86, 142–44
Englert, François, 183, 221–26, 228, 238–41
entertainment industry, 204–8
entropy, 267
Epicurus, 279, 280
Euclidean geometry, 124
European Organization for Nuclear Research, 61
European Physical Society Prize, 64
Evans, Lyn
and design of the LHC, 81–83, 241
and explosion at the LHC, 76
and inauguration of the LHC, 4
and new collider proposals, 277
and physics beyond the Standard Model, 18
retirement, 90–91
expansion of space, 246, 254–55
experimentation vs. theory, 8, 192–93
The Fabric of Reality (Deutsch), 126
Faraday, Michael, 14, 121–22
Fawell, Harris, 24
Fermi, Enrico, 8, 47, 132, 155, 228–30
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab)
competition with CERN, 65–69
and Congressional hearings, 269
D Zero experiment, 199–200
maximum energies achieved, 86
and predecessors of the LHC, 16
and top quark discovery, 136–37
fermions
and antimatter, 43–44
and atomic structure, 28–29
and the Big Bang, 161
and boson forces, 52
and connection fields, 162
described, 293–95, 294
detection of, 41
fermionic fields, 131–33, 217
and Feynman diagrams, 167–68
and Higgs decay modes, 173
mass of, 143, 294
and neutron decay, 132
and particle spin, 158, 285–86, 290–94
and quantum field theory, 33
and string theory, 262
and supersymmetry, 257–58, 259, 261
Fermi telescope, 251–52
Feynman, Richard, 101, 167, 213, 229, 237
Feynman diagrams
and dark matter, 251
described, 167
and Englert and Brout model, 223
and gluon fusion to create Higgs, 166–67, 167–69, 168
and Higgs decay modes, 173, 188
and weak interactions, 229
fields and field theory, 31–35, 118–20, 123–28, 220
fine-structure constant, 252–53
fixed-target experiments, 62
“flavor” symmetries, 150
force-carrying particles, 5, 11, 28–29, 131, 283. See also bosons
Ford, Kent, 244
Forester, James, 68
fossil hunting, 94
Franck, James, 209–10
Franklin, Benjamin, 121, 271
Freese, Katherine, 250
Freund, Peter, 216
Friedman, Jerome, 66
From Eternity to Here (Carroll), 255, 267
funding for physics research, 17–18, 69–73, 80–83, 269–70
fuzziness of quantum mechanics, 34
Gaillard, Mary K., 174
Galileo, 156
gamma rays, 251
Gargamelle experiment, 162, 237
gauge bosons
and connection fields, 153
and development of the Higgs model, 222–24, 231, 233, 236
and electroweak unification, 233
and particle spin, 286, 291
and symmetry, 52, 160, 213
gauge invariance, 151
gauge symmetry
and connection fields, 153–54
and development of the Higgs model, 219–20, 222–23, 225, 227, 236, 239
and superconductivity, 211, 212
Geer, Steve, 180
Gell-Mann, Murray, 50
general relativity, 14, 123–24
Gianotti, Fabiola
and announcement of Higgs discovery, 164–65, 183–84
and t
he arts, 277
on data transmission system, 113
and inauguration of the LHC, 4, 6
and memo leaks, 203
and OPERA experiment findings, 195–97
and physics beyond the Standard Model, 18
Gilbert, Walter, 220–21
Ginzburg, Vitaly, 214–15
Giudice, Gian, 90
Glashow, Sheldon, 232–34, 236–37
global positioning system (GPS), 14
global symmetries, 151
gluons
and connection fields, 153
and creation of Higgs bosons, 166–67, 167–69, 168
evidence of, 64
and Feynman diagrams, 168
and Higgs decay modes, 171, 172
masslessness of, 143
and nuclear forces, 30
and particle detectors, 96–97, 97–98, 103–4
and particle spin, 53, 286
and proton collisions, 102
and quantum field theory, 33, 129
and the Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collider (RHIC), 67–68
and strong interactions, 156
and supersymmetry, 259
and virtual particles, 101
The God Particle (Lederman and Teresi), 20
“God Particle” term, 19, 37
Goldstone, Jeff, 217, 220–25, 239, 241
gravatinos, 286
gravitons
and connection fields, 153
and force of gravity, 29
masslessness of, 143
and particle detector findings, 104–5
and particle spin, 52, 53, 288
and quantum field theory, 33, 130
gravity
and dark matter, 64, 143, 247–48
and field theory, 117, 123–25
gravitational fields, 33, 63–64, 118–20
gravitational lensing, 143
gravitational waves, 124–25
and the hierarchy problem, 254
particle associated with, 29
and particle spin, 52, 286, 291
and quantum field theory, 33, 130
and quantum mechanics, 25, 29
and the Standard Model, 26
and superconductivity, 211
and symmetry, 152, 154, 213
and vacuum energy, 221
See also quantum gravity
Grazer, Brian, 204–5
Great Pyramid of Giza, 106
Greece, ancient, 7, 10, 279
Greek Security Team, 113–14
Green, Michael, 262
Gross, David, 30
Guinness Book of World Records, 67
Gunion, John, 174
Guralnik, Gerald, 183, 222, 225–28, 233–34, 238–41
Haber, Howard, 174
hackers, 113–14
hadronic calorimeters, 107, 107–10, 109
hadrons
discovery of, 50–52, 56
and Higgs decay modes, 172
and nuclear forces, 30
origin of term, 48
and particle colliders, 63, 96, 103, 109
types of, 294
Hagen, Carl Richard, 183, 222, 225–28, 233–34, 238–41
Hahnemann, Samuel, 39
Han dynasty, 121
hardening of electronics, 108
Hawking, Stephen, 21, 211, 255
Heisenberg, Werner, 155
helicity of particles, 290–92
Hellman, Hal, 55
Hertz, Heinrich, 122, 271
Heuer, Rolf, 3, 16
Hewett, JoAnne, 1–3, 6, 14, 17–18, 70, 282
hierarchy problem, 254, 255–56, 260–61, 265–66
Higgs, Peter
and announcement of Higgs discovery, 183, 185
and development of the Higgs mechanism, 222–28, 239–41
on “God Particle” term, 20
and Higgs boson name, 11–12, 238
and inauguration of the LHC, 5
Sakurai Prize, 240
Higgs bosons
announcement of, 3–4, 6, 12, 183–85
and connection fields, 153
creation of, 166–67, 167–69, 168
and dark matter, 248–49, 249–52, 251
decay modes of, 16, 54, 170–74, 171, 173, 173, 184–88
discovery of, 5–6, 78–79, 175, 181–85
early indications of, 64
and Feynman diagrams, 166–67, 167–69, 168, 173
and field theory, 117–18
and “God Particle” term, 19–20
lifespan of, 170, 272
and mass of particles, 5, 12, 27, 31–37, 35, 53–54, 58, 60, 142–46, 273
and neutron decay, 132–33, 134
origin of name, 5, 11–12
and particle detectors, 96, 104
and particle spin, 52–53, 53, 285, 286, 288
prediction of, 224, 266–67, 282
and the Standard Model, 9, 11–12
summarized, 35–36
and supersymmetry, 258, 259, 259–60
and the weak force, 32
and WIMPs, 248–49, 250, 252
See also Higgs field
Higgs field
analogy for lay audience, 137–39
and the Big Bang, 160–61
and connection fields, 153
described, 32–34
and the Higgs boson, 117–18, 166–67, 167–69
and mass of particles, 5, 12, 27, 31–37, 35, 53–54, 58, 60, 142–46, 273
and matter-antimatter asymmetry, 268
and particle spin, 290–92
and relativity, 139, 273
resting value of, 35, 139–42, 141, 146, 147–50, 253–54, 273
summarized, 35–37
and supersymmetry, 257, 259–60, 260–61
and symmetry breaking, 52, 146, 147, 147–50, 156–60, 162, 273–74, 278, 292
and vacuum energy, 256
See also Higgs bosons
The Higgs Hunter’s Guide (Gunion, Haber, Kane, and Dawson), 174
Higgs mechanism
as collaboration, 212
developments leading to, 222, 224–26, 236
and naming conventions, 237–39
and symmetry breaking, 289
and vacuum energy, 256
and weak interaction theory, 163
High Energy Physics (Hellman), 55
Hindus, 10
homeopathy, 39–41
House of Wisdom (blog), 279
Howard, Ron, 204–5
Hulse, Russell, 124
Hunt, Johnnie Bryan, 73
ICARUS experiment, 196–97
Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, 19
Imagine Entertainment, 204
Incandela, Joe, 3–4, 6, 18, 79, 184, 186, 277
The Infinity Puzzle (Close), 234
information technology, 110–12, 112–14, 179–80, 201–2
inner detectors, 107, 107, 109
Insane Clown Posse, 115–17
Institute for Advanced Study, 19, 155
Institute for Theoretical Physics, 209–10
interference patterns, 125
International Conference on High Energy Physics (ICHEP), 3, 181, 203
International Linear Collider (ILC) (proposed), 276–77
International Space Station, 70
Internet, 113, 274
Intersecting Storage Rings (ISR), 61–62
ions, 45
iridium, 56
Jago, Crispian, 39–41
Janot, Patrick, 65
Johnson Space Center, 70
Jona-Lasinio, Giovanni, 217, 219
Kaluza, Theodor, 263
Kane, Gordon, 174, 255
Kaplan, David, 206–8, 277
Kendall, Henry, 66
Kibble, Tom, 222, 225–28, 233–36, 238–41
Klein, Abraham, 221
Klein, Oskar, 263
Krumhansl, James, 72
Lamb, Willis, 50
Lamont, Mike, 77–78
Landau, Lev, 214–15
Laplace, Pierre-Simon, 120, 123
Large Electron-Positron Collider (LEP), 17, 62, 80, 82
Large Hadron Collider (LHC)
advances of, 56–57
and black hole panic, 189–91
blog coverage of startup, 199
and cancellation of the SCC, 73
competition with Tevatron, 65
construction of, 81–83
cost of, 65, 83, 90, 270, 276
damage to, 75–77
and dark matter, 252
and decay of Higgs bosons, 54
and discovery the Higgs, 15–16
energies attained, 86–88, 181
and energy/wavelength connection, 127
and Evans’s retirement, 90–91
impact on particle physics, 8–9
inauguration of, 1–6
magnet of, 75–77, 88–90
mass of particles created by, 272
operation of, 83–85
and particle “pileup,” 102, 182, 185
planning and design of, 80–81, 81–83
and quench, 76
recovery from breakdown, 77–79
and statistical analysis, 180
and string theory, 262
and supersymmetry, 259
“Large Hadron Rap,” 205–6
Larry King radio show, 270
Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), 124–25
Laue, Max von, 209–10
Lederman, Leon, 19–20, 25, 37, 48, 67
Lee, Benjamin, 221, 237–38
Lee, T. D., 155
Legoland, 9
Leibniz, Gottfried, 222
Lemaître, Georges, 22
leptons
and atomic structure, 11
described, 293
generations of, 49, 295
and Higgs decay modes, 171, 184–85, 187
mass of, 53, 143
and neutron decay, 133–34
origin of term, 48
and particle detectors, 96
and particle spin, 286, 292
and resting value of Higgs field, 146
and the strong nuclear force, 41
Leucippus, 279
Lewis, Gilbert, 127
LHCb experiment, 97
LHCf experiment, 97
lifespan of elementary particles, 94–95, 105–6, 170
light, 125, 143
linear accelerators, 66, 276
liquid noble gas particle detectors, 250–51
local symmetries, 151, 154–55, 211, 222, 289
Lucas, George, 207
Lucretius, 279
Lykken, Joe, 79, 238–39
magnets and magnetism
and the electromagnetic field, 120–22
and fields, 116–18
Insane Clown Posse on, 116–17
at the LHC, 75–77, 88–90
and particle charges, 57
and particle detectors, 99–100
technological advances, 274
See also electromagnetic force
Maiani, Luciano, 65, 83
Manhattan Project, 72, 269
Mann, Michael, 205
Mansfield, Edwin, 274
mass
and the Big Bang, 161
and creation of Higgs bosons, 166–67
and dark matter, 246