- #1
bsaucer
- 30
- 0
Is the Higgs boson only a particle of pure mass? It has no charge, no spin, no color, no flavor, etc. Does it have any other non-zero characteristic besides just mass?
Is Higgs boson a particle of pure mass?
It is believed to only have mass as a non-zero characteristic.In summary, the Higgs boson is a particle with spin 0 and charges of space parity + and charge parity +. It has no color, flavor, or charge and is its own antiparticle. Its only non-zero characteristic is mass.
- #2
Bill_K
Science Advisor
- 4,158
- 205
I'm not sure what it would mean to be a "particle of pure mass", but in any case the answer is no. 
The Higgs boson is a particle, not too dissimilar from other particles. It's thought to have spin 0, space parity +, charge parity +, and zero values for the various possible types of charge. The charges must be zero because they change sign under charge conjugation, and the Higgs boson is its own antiparticle.
The Higgs boson is a particle, not too dissimilar from other particles. It's thought to have spin 0, space parity +, charge parity +, and zero values for the various possible types of charge. The charges must be zero because they change sign under charge conjugation, and the Higgs boson is its own antiparticle.
1. What is the Higgs boson?
The Higgs boson is a subatomic particle that is believed to give other particles their mass. It was predicted by the Standard Model of particle physics and was finally discovered in 2012 by the Large Hadron Collider at CERN.
2. Why is the Higgs boson sometimes referred to as the "God particle"?
The term "God particle" was coined by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Leon Lederman in his book, "The God Particle: If the Universe Is the Answer, What Is the Question?" It is a nickname for the Higgs boson because of its crucial role in explaining the origin of mass in the universe.
3. Is the Higgs boson a particle of pure mass?
No, the Higgs boson is not a particle of pure mass. It is a particle that interacts with the Higgs field, which is a theoretical field that permeates the universe. This interaction gives particles their mass, but the Higgs boson itself has a very small mass of its own.
4. How does the Higgs boson give particles their mass?
The Higgs boson interacts with the Higgs field, which gives particles their mass by slowing them down as they move through it. The more a particle interacts with the Higgs field, the greater its mass will be.
5. What is the significance of the discovery of the Higgs boson?
The discovery of the Higgs boson confirmed the validity of the Standard Model of particle physics and provided a better understanding of how particles acquire mass. It also opened up new possibilities for further research and could potentially lead to new breakthroughs in our understanding of the universe.
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