Good particle physics primer

In summary, the speaker is a sophomore in college and intern at SLAC who is trying to gain a better understanding of particle physics in order to analyze rare B decays. They have read some books but are looking for a more comprehensive guide, preferably online or printed. They have found Griffiths' book to be good but too technical for their purposes. Another person suggests that understanding particle physics requires knowledge of quantum mechanics and field theory. They recommend learning about Feynman diagrams and classical scattering theory.
  • #1
unclefeezus
2
0
Hi all,

I'm a rising sophomore in college and intern at SLAC. I'm trying to pick up a little bit more of a background in particle physics so I can analyze rare B decays. I've read a few books that have covered particle physics, but I've just picked up the flavor of it (no pun intended). I'm currently reading Intro to Elementary Particles by Griffiths, which is good, but maybe a little too technical for my purposes. Does anyone know of any good primers, online or printed? It would be nice to start with a simple but comprehensive guide, so that it would then be easier to delve into the more technical stuff.
 
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  • #2
Oops, I didn't read the sticky. That's a decent starting place.
 
  • #3
Imo griffiths is about as elementary as you are going to get. I kinda had the same problem when I was a freshman/sophomore in college. I had quantum mechanics I at the 400 lvl but I didn't yet have the full tools necessary to study nuclear physics, which I was interning for. So I had to scrounge through the library looking for texts that would explain to me what was going on, more or less without success. I basically needed a proffessor to do it for me at that point as I still had serious confusions about what I was doing. I kinda figured out its really something that doesn't click until you have several (3-4) courses that naively seem unrelated under your belt.

Particle physics is even worse, as it really (imo) doesn't make one inch of sense without quantum mechanics II and field theory.

You need to understand Feynman diagrams and have a good basis of classical scattering theory (look up Rutherford scattering for a start to get a good feel for what differential cross sections are, as well as branching ratios and the various other things people measure in an experiment). Griffiths is pretty good on that point, but it does take a certain discipline to go through it without having a full understanding of relativistic QM (which is still rare at your lvl)
 

1. What is particle physics?

Particle physics is a branch of physics that studies the fundamental building blocks of matter and the forces that govern their interactions. These building blocks are known as particles.

2. What are the basic principles of particle physics?

The basic principles of particle physics include the Standard Model, which describes the fundamental particles and their interactions, and the theory of quantum mechanics, which explains the behavior of particles on a subatomic level.

3. What are some applications of particle physics?

Particle physics has numerous applications, including in medical imaging and treatment, technology development, and understanding the origins of the universe. For example, particle accelerators are used in medical imaging techniques such as PET scans, and the discovery of the Higgs boson has led to advancements in technology such as MRI machines.

4. What is the Large Hadron Collider (LHC)?

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is the world's largest and most powerful particle accelerator, located at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Switzerland. It is used to accelerate particles to high energies and collide them in order to study the fundamental nature of matter.

5. What is dark matter and how does it relate to particle physics?

Dark matter is a hypothetical form of matter that is believed to make up about 85% of the total matter in the universe. It does not interact with light and therefore cannot be directly observed, but its existence is inferred through its gravitational effects on visible matter. Particle physics plays a crucial role in studying and understanding dark matter, as many theories propose that it is made up of new, undiscovered particles.

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