All articles tagged with #particle physics
A theoretical team proposes a previously unknown heavy particle that mixes with the Higgs boson to act as a conduit between visible matter and dark matter residing in a warped fifth dimension. This could help explain fermion masses and the dark-to-visible matter ratio, but the particle would be too heavy for current colliders; future machines or gravitational-wave observations might provide indirect evidence.
A long-standing puzzle about the muon's anomalous magnetic moment (g-2) is resolved by a new, ultra-precise lattice QCD calculation that aligns the Standard Model prediction with experimental measurements within half a standard deviation. The result removes the need for a hypothetical fifth force and reinforces quantum field theory as the foundation of particle physics, though it may still leave a narrow window for new physics to appear in future experiments.
Physicists report evidence for an eta-prime mesic nucleus—an exotic, short-lived bound state where an eta-prime meson sits inside a carbon nucleus—hinting that meson mass can change in dense nuclear matter and offering clues about how vacuum structure shapes mass.
In high-energy proton collisions, scientists observed particle pairs emerging directly from the vacuum, with correlated spins that persist through short-lived decays, suggesting vacuum fluctuations contribute to the mass and structure of visible matter. Data from Brookhaven’s RHIC using the STAR detector point to vacuum as an active source of matter, offering a new way to study how vacuum structure, spin, and mass generation are connected, while further tests at different energies are planned.
Decades of hints for a light sterile neutrino have collapsed after recent null results (KATRIN and MicroBooNE, plus reactor and gallium studies), effectively ruling out the simplest sterile-neutrino explanation for several anomalies. While the LSND/Miniboone/gallium puzzles remain unexplained, physicists are pursuing more complex neutrino scenarios and await data from JUNO, DUNE, and Isodar to map neutrino masses and oscillations.
Scientists at CERN's LHCb have identified a new baryon, Xi-cc-plus, composed of two charm quarks and one down quark. Weighing about four times the mass of a proton, it offers a testbed for quantum chromodynamics and the strong force; discovered after 2023 detector upgrades, it is only the second observed baryon with two heavy quarks and has a lifetime up to six times shorter than a similar earlier baryon.
British researchers at CERN report the discovery of Xi-cc-plus, a proton-like particle four times heavier than a regular proton, found in data from the upgraded LHCb detector after a 20-year search, promising new insights into the strong force that binds atomic nuclei.
CERN’s LHCb collaboration announced the discovery of a new baryon called Xi-cc-plus, containing two charm quarks and one down quark, making it the 80th identified particle and the first new one found after the LHCb upgrades completed in 2023. It is heavier than a proton and has a shorter lifetime—about six times shorter than a similar earlier particle—posing detection challenges but providing a test bed for quantum chromodynamics and guiding future collider plans like the Future Circular Collider.
Scientists completed a seven-year upgrade to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory by drilling six holes about 1.5 miles deep at the South Pole and stringing hundreds of light sensors through the ice, creating a denser network to catch fleeting neutrino footprints and help answer fundamental questions about the universe.
A Hackaday Links roundup: RHIC is shut down to make way for the Electron-Ion Collider; Waymo discusses remote assistance for unresolved driving scenarios; Bitcoin dips below $63k before rebounding amid AI-driven uncertainty and political context; Windows 3D Viewer is deprecated with a slick web-based replacement; NASA reports Curiosity’s Martian organics not fully explained by non-biological processes; debates over low-Earth orbit satellite density highlight space’s vast scale; and Xikipedia offers a continuous Simple English Wikipedia feed.
More than a decade after the Higgs discovery, particle physics has yet to find new physics beyond the Standard Model, prompting a crisis about the field’s direction. Proposals for big next-gen machines (the Future Circular Collider, muon colliders) and smaller-scale tests (axions, hidden valleys) mingle with advances in AI-assisted data analysis, but there’s no discovery guarantee and talent is drifting toward other fields. In short, particle physics isn’t dead, but it’s hard—and the path forward remains uncertain.
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Switzerland will be shut down starting June for about five years to undergo major upgrades to increase its collision capacity, with the goal of enabling more advanced experiments. During this period, CERN is also planning the development of the Future Circular Collider, a much larger and more powerful accelerator, although its future is uncertain due to high costs and scientific debates. The LHC's shutdown is part of ongoing efforts to deepen our understanding of fundamental physics, including the universe's origins.
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is being shut down temporarily for upgrades to increase its collision capacity, with a long-term plan to replace it with the even larger Future Circular Collider, aiming to continue groundbreaking discoveries in fundamental physics despite high costs and scientific debates.
New results from the MicroBooNE experiment have ruled out the existence of the long-suspected sterile neutrino, narrowing the options for explaining neutrino anomalies and paving the way for future research into other exotic particles and fundamental questions in physics.
China's Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO), after 17 years of development, has begun operations and achieved unprecedented precision in detecting neutrinos, potentially solving key questions about their mass hierarchy and advancing our understanding of fundamental physics.