Higgs-Boson/Gravition Existence

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In summary, in order to prove the existence of two particles, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) will use physics models with and without the respective particles to calculate expected experimental outcomes and compare them to the actual outcome of experiments. This involves computer simulations, statistical data analysis, and searching for combinations of particles that the particles could decay into. The energy signature of the Higgs is thought to be in the GeV range, and it will be searched for in the collision debris. However, the graviton, which is thought to be the quantization of gravitational waves, is much more difficult to observe and its existence is based on theoretical predictions rather than experimental evidence.
  • #1
Anonymous23
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How will the LHC prove the existence of these two particles? How is it possible to prove they exist, and what means will they use to find out?
 
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  • #2
Basically, you take physics models with and without the respective particle, and calculate expected experimental outcomes. Then, you compare the calculations to the actual outcome of the experiment. Since you already mentioned the name of the current main experiment, I don't really know how to explain "what means they use". There is a lot of computer simulation (both for the predictions and for the simulation of the experimental setup) and a lot of statistical data analysis techniques involved.
 
  • #3
The energy signature of the Higgs is thought to be in a certain MEv range which the LHC can reach. They will search in the collision debris for a particle with the properties of the Higgs. There is no quantum theory of Gravity so the graviton does not have any theoretical basis at present.
 
  • #4
cosmik debris said:
The energy signature of the Higgs is thought to be in a certain MEv range which the LHC can reach. They will search in the collision debris for a particle with the properties of the Higgs...
They actually search for combinations of particles the Higgs could decay into. It doesn't live long enough to be observed directly.

The hard part is that the same combinations of decay particles can also occur as the results of other, already known SM interactions. Therefore, as Timo says, they have to measure the actual occurrence rates very accurately and compare these with models that do or don't incorporate the Higgs, and if so assume different masses for it. The marginal difference in occurrence rates is not large, this is why they are having to collect so much data to clearly identify which predicition the facts actually match.

The MeV range is actually GeV, incidentally.
 
  • #5
cosmik debris said:
There is no quantum theory of Gravity so the graviton does not have any theoretical basis at present.

This actually isn't true at all. We know that in any quantized theory of gravity, we require things to reduce to GR in the appropriate non-quantum limit. From what we know about gravitational waves in GR (of which the graviton is the quantization), we know the graviton must be a massless, spin 2 particle. Of course one can argue for other theories of gravity which have more exotic gravitational wave spectra, but that's not really the point; in these theories too you can make similar statements.

It's rather analogous to classical EM and QED. Before we had a theory of QED, it did not at all mean that we knew nothing about the photon. Based on the non-quantum limit you can make general statements about what the quantized theory must do.

But, it's completely ridiculous to expect to observe individual gravitons. The gravitational wave astronomers have been trying for decades and still haven't made any detections of the WAVES. A naive calculation shows that there's something like 10^30 gravitons in one of these (extremely feeble) gravitational waves, which basically shows that detecting the individual graviton is hopeless.
 
  • #6
AdrianTheRock said:
They actually search for combinations of particles the Higgs could decay into. It doesn't live long enough to be observed directly.
...
The MeV range is actually GeV, incidentally.

Thanks for the correction, and yes GeV is what I meant.
 

1. What is the Higgs-Boson/Graviton?

The Higgs-Boson and Graviton are both theoretical particles that are thought to play a critical role in the fundamental forces of nature. The Higgs-Boson is believed to give particles their mass, while the Graviton is thought to be the carrier of the gravitational force.

2. Why is the existence of the Higgs-Boson/Graviton important?

The existence of these particles is important because it helps to explain the fundamental forces of nature and how particles acquire mass. It also helps to unify the theories of quantum mechanics and general relativity.

3. How was the Higgs-Boson discovered?

The Higgs-Boson was discovered at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in 2012 through the collision of protons at high energies. Scientists analyzed the data from these collisions and were able to identify the signature of the Higgs-Boson.

4. Has the Graviton been discovered?

No, the Graviton has not yet been discovered. It is a theoretical particle and has not been observed or detected by experiments. Scientists are still working on ways to detect and confirm its existence.

5. How does the existence of the Higgs-Boson/Graviton affect our understanding of the universe?

The existence of these particles helps to fill in gaps in our understanding of the fundamental forces of nature. It also supports the Standard Model of particle physics and provides a framework for further research and discoveries in the field of physics.

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