Discovering Bosons: The Fascinating World of Particle Physics Explained

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In summary, bosons are particles that control the interactions of electrons. They are made up of quarks and gluons.
  • #1
thharrimw
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I've heard a lot about LHC and how one of it's goles is to make a higgs boson but i don't know what a boson even is so could someone give me an explanation about what a boson it and why pphysicst are so intersted in them?
:confused:
 
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  • #2
thharrimw said:
I've heard a lot about LHC and how one of it's goles is to make a higgs boson but i don't know what a boson even is so could someone give me an explanation about what a boson it and why pphysicst are so intersted in them?
:confused:

The particle states in Hilbert space are represented by the irreducible representations of the Lorentz group. The field operators, which contain the creation/annihilation particle operators are represented by the representations of the Lorentz group too.
It can be see that the half-integer spin fields have to obey the certain anticommutation relations, these are fermions; integer spin fields have to obey certain commutation relations, these are boson. The reason is to satisfy the causality, for example, if the generic field [tex]\psi(x)[/tex] satisfies
[tex][\psi(x),\psi(y)]_{\pm} = 0[/tex] for [tex]x,y[/tex] spacelike separated, where [tex][]_{\pm}[/tex] denotes commutator or anticommutator, then two measurement performed at two spacelike separated location can be no related at all. This is called microcausality.

In short, the micro-causality demands for certain fields, they must obey certain algebra. One of the class of fields is called fermion, the other class of fields is called boson. The composition of fermions can form a boson.

In SM, bosons are the gauge particles and Higgs, the fundamental matter particles are all fermions.

Cheers
 
  • #3
If you stack apples (or electrons, or fermions) in a box, the box will be filled with them at some point. However, you can not fill a box with bosons (say photons for instance).
 
  • #4
You can also say that a boson have integer spin (0,1,2,3...)

and a fermion have spin 1/2, 3/2 etc..

Particle physicsits are interested in these bosons, a certain type of bosons, called Gauge bosons, since they are the force mediators of a force. For instance the electro magnetic force is mediated by virtual photons between electrically charged particles.

The higgs boson is of interest since it is the "last" missing piece of the theory that governs all of this with force mediating particles etc, roughly speaking. The theory that explain how particles interact, the standard model, is the best tested and verified physical theory that exists, but there is one particle missing, and this is a paradox -> Let's search for the higgs boson at LHC and hope we'll find it :-)
 
  • #5
so do they make up protons, netrons,and electrons?
 
  • #6
thharrimw said:
so do they make up protons, netrons,and electrons?

As malawi_glenn said, "normal matter" like protons and electrons are not bosons. However, an electron is a charged particle and creates an electromagnetic field, which will affect nearby electrons. The electromagnetic field consists of particles of light called photons, which are a type of boson. So bosons are responsible for the interactions of "normal matter" such as electrons.
 
  • #7
thharrimw said:
so do they make up protons, netrons,and electrons?

What do make up protons, neutrons and electrons? Neutrons and protons are made up of quarks and gluons, and electrons are electrons.
 
  • #8
malawi_glenn said:
Let's search for the higgs boson at LHC and hope we'll find it :-)

Don't you think it might be more interesting if they don't find it?:tongue2:
 
  • #9
atyy said:
Don't you think it might be more interesting if they don't find it?:tongue2:

well hehe, it would be hard to get new $$$ to make a new experiment ;-)
 
  • #10
so bosons are particles that control the interactions of electrons? what are quarks and gluons?
 
  • #11
thharrimw said:
so bosons are particles that control the interactions of electrons? what are quarks and gluons?

there is no equivalence between bosons and gauge bosons... there are bosons which are not gauge bosons.

Use google.. you'll find a lot of answers there. Then ask questions about what you find there.
 
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  • #12
what's the difference between bosons and gage bosons?
 
  • #13
thharrimw said:
what's the difference between bosons and gage bosons?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gauge_boson

Gauge bosons are bosons which arises in order to give gauge invariance to a lagrangian.

Bosons are integer spin particles in general.

It's like asking "what's the difference between animals and lions" :-)
 
  • #14
malawi_glenn said:
well hehe, it would be hard to get new $$$ to make a new experiment ;-)
I disagree with that. There were other BIG devices which have not found what they were meant to find, at they still are in fancy. See the quark-gluon story for instance :uhh:
 
  • #15
humanino said:
I disagree with that. There were other BIG devices which have not found what they were meant to find, at they still are in fancy. See the quark-gluon story for instance :uhh:

hehe I know, I'm just so excited that LHC is running that I can't think clear all the time ;-)
 
  • #16
humanino said:
I disagree with that. There were other BIG devices which have not found what they were meant to find, at they still are in fancy. See the quark-gluon story for instance :uhh:
To be fait I should add, of course, that not finding the Higgs boson would certainly not be a failure at all ! On the contrary.
 
  • #17
I just wonder, if they find the Higgs Boson, what would be the next missing particle. It's just a non ending mystery. If they find about what happened billionth of a second after the Big Bang, they will ask what happened a little bit earlier of that moment.
 
  • #18
Sakha said:
I just wonder, if they find the Higgs Boson, what would be the next missing particle. It's just a non ending mystery. If they find about what happened billionth of a second after the Big Bang, they will ask what happened a little bit earlier of that moment.

well now the Higgs boson is not particilar important for cosmology...
But we still don't konw what dark matter and dark energy is, that would be the "next step".
 

1. What are bosons and why are they important in particle physics?

Bosons are a type of fundamental particle that carry energy and forces between other particles. They are important in particle physics because they help explain the fundamental interactions between particles and are crucial in understanding the properties of matter.

2. How are bosons discovered in particle physics experiments?

Bosons are discovered through particle accelerators, which use powerful magnetic fields to accelerate particles to high speeds and then collide them. The resulting particles and energy can then be detected and analyzed to identify the presence of bosons.

3. What is the significance of the discovery of the Higgs boson?

The Higgs boson is a crucial piece of the Standard Model of particle physics, which explains the fundamental particles and their interactions. Its discovery in 2012 confirmed the existence of the Higgs field, which is responsible for giving particles their mass. This discovery helped complete our understanding of the fundamental forces and particles in the universe.

4. Are there different types of bosons?

Yes, there are different types of bosons, including the photon, W and Z bosons, and the gluon. Each type of boson is associated with a different fundamental force and plays a unique role in particle interactions.

5. How does the study of bosons impact our daily lives?

The study of bosons may seem abstract, but it has practical applications in our daily lives. Particle accelerators, which are used to study bosons, have also been used in medical imaging and cancer treatment. Additionally, the discovery of new bosons can lead to advancements in technology and energy production.

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