Higgs field at the event horizon

[Antiphon]

If the postulated Higgs field has a non-zero vacuum expectation, shouldn't the typical black hole be ingesting Higgs particles at an alarming rate?

 

[Bill_K]

The Higgs field is a background field and does not contain any Higgs bosons. It is the 'vacuum state' for Higgs bosons, i.e. the state with occupation number zero. A black hole has no effect on it, and vice versa.

 

[Antiphon]

That makes sense of course. So then if there are no Higgs particles in empty space, how do They impart mass to the typical particleslike the electron or proton? Is it via virtual Higgs particles in the immediate vicinity of say the electron?

 

[Vanadium 50]

A Higgs vev is not the same thing as a Higgs particle, which is an excitation of the Higgs field of definite momentum.

 

[Antiphon]

Yes, that makes sense too. (What's a vev?)

 

[yenchin]

Yes, that makes sense too. (What's a vev?)

vacuum expectation value