Complete the table

Learning objectives
 To recall the current best theory of particle
physics
 To consider the variation in mass and
charge of the particles involved
 To discuss why the standard model is
considered symmetrical
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0KjXsGRvoA
CERN standard model

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGWlT8SqXLM
Unifying fundamental forces

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FWxd78sOZ8
The electron and the model of the atom
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=RIg1Vh7uPyw

 Higgs field

http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=yKz07k04D70

Higgs boson
 Probing the Heart of Matter
 Activity 1 p108
- galaxies moving apart, red shifts, distant
galaxies, the age of the universe
 Activity 2 p108
- atoms, nuclei, protons, neutrons, electrons,
quarks, particle accelerators, radioactivity,
fission and fusion
 Some reading
Answer the following:
 What was Alan Guth’s spectacular realisation?
 What is GUT
 What is inflation?
 What is meant by a fundamental particle?
 What two types of particle can the 12 fundamental
particles by divided into?
 Who proposed the standard model as a theory?
 Why is the term generations suitable for use here?
 The standard model
 Look at the diagram on p 110 and the
printed versions…
 Matter particles
 All matter around us is made of elementary particles, the building blocks of
matter.

 These particles occur in two basic types called quarks and leptons.

 Each group consists of six particles, which are related in pairs, or

“generations”. The lightest and most stable particles make up the first
generation, whereas the heavier and less stable particles belong to the second
and third generations.

 All stable matter in the universe is made from particles that belong to the first
generation; any heavier particles quickly decay to the next most stable level.
 Anti particles
 Every particle has an anti-particle
 Electron  positron e+ or e
 Up quark (u)  anti up (u)
 Down quark  anti down etc.
 Matter particles
 The six quarks are paired in the three generations – the “up quark” and the
“down quark” form the first generation, followed by the “charm quark” and
“strange quark”, then the “top quark” and “bottom quark”.
 Quarks also come in three different “colours” and only mix in such ways as
to form colourless objects.

 The six leptons are similarly arranged in three generations – the “electron”
and the “electron neutrino”, the “muon” and the “muon neutrino”, and the
“tau” and the “tau neutrino”.
 The electron, the muon and the tau all have an electric charge and a sizeable
mass, whereas the neutrinos are electrically neutral and have very little mass.
 Forces and carrier particles
 There are four fundamental forces at work in the universe: the
strong force, the weak force, the electromagnetic force, and the
gravitational force.
 They work over different ranges and have different strengths.
 Gravity is the weakest but it has an infinite range.
 The electromagnetic force also has infinite range but it is many
times stronger than gravity.
 The weak and strong forces are effective only over a very short
range and dominate only at the level of subatomic particles.
 Despite its name, the weak force is much stronger than gravity
but it is indeed the weakest of the other three. The strong force,
as the name suggests, is the strongest of all four fundamental
interactions.
 Three of the fundamental forces result from the exchange of force-carrier
particles, which belong to a broader group called “bosons”.
 Particles of matter transfer discrete amounts of energy by exchanging bosons
with each other. Each fundamental force has its own corresponding boson –
the strong force is carried by the “gluon”, the electromagnetic force is carried
by the “photon”, and the “W and Z bosons” are responsible for the weak force.
 Although not yet found, the “graviton” should be the corresponding force-
carrying particle of gravity.
 The Standard Model includes the electromagnetic, strong and weak forces and
all their carrier particles, and explains well how these forces act on all of the
matter particles. However, the most familiar force in our everyday lives,
gravity, is not part of the Standard Model, as fitting gravity comfortably into
this framework has proved to be a difficult challenge.
 The quantum theory used to describe the micro world, and the
general theory of relativity used to describe the macro world, are
difficult to fit into a single framework.
 No one has managed to make the two mathematically
compatible in the context of the Standard Model. But luckily for
particle physics, when it comes to the minuscule scale of
particles, the effect of gravity is so weak as to be negligible.
 Only when matter is in bulk, at the scale of the human body or of
the planets for example, does the effect of gravity dominate. So,
the Standard Model still works well despite its reluctant
exclusion of one of the fundamental forces.
 So far so good, but...

 ...it is not time for physicists to call it a day just

yet. Even though the Standard Model is currently
the best description there is of the subatomic
world, it does not explain the complete picture.
The theory incorporates only three out of the four
fundamental forces, omitting gravity.
 The Particles and their Properties.
There are two types of particles that are thought to be fundamental. That is,
they cannot be broken down into any smaller constituent particles. These two
types of particles are the leptons and the quarks.

However, these can, under the right conditions, be converted into energy, or
be formed from bundles of energy. Also, the heavier ones can decay into
lighter ones, with the release of some of their energy.

As the regions of the universe near us are now in a much lower-energy state
than they were shortly after the big bang, only the lightest particles in each
family are now very commonly observed.

Others can be re-created by high-energy collisions, such as those

produced in particle accelerators.
 The Leptons
The most familiar member of this group is the electron, but there
are also similar, heavier (and hence more energetic) particles
called the muon and the tau.

For each one of these, there is a smaller “partner” called a

neutrino – the electron neutrino, the muon neutrino and the tau
neutrino.

Each of these 6 also has an antiparticle, for example, the

anti-electron or positron.

The leptons are all capable of independent existence.

 Properties of the Leptons
The electron, muon and tau all have
mass. The neutrinos have no mass,
according to the Standard Model.
However, there is some evidence that
neutrinos do have an actual, very small
mass.

The electron, muon and tau all have

electric charges of –1, and their anti-
particles have electric charges of +1.
The neutrinos have no electric
charge.

All of the leptons have another

property called “spin”. Their spins
can be +½ or -½.
 The Quarks
The quarks are not capable of independent
existence, and are found only as groups, making
up larger particles (called “bound states”).

There are 6 quarks, called up, down, charm, strange,

bottom and top. The “everyday” quarks are the up and
down quarks. For each quark there is an anti-quark.

The quarks have mass and electric charge.

The electric charges are either +⅔ or -⅓ for
quarks, and -⅔ or +⅓ for the matching anti-
quarks.

They also have spin of ±½. There is also another

property called “colour” charge, which comes in 3
varieties, red, green and blue. The anti-quarks have
anti-colours: anti-red, anti-green and anti-blue.
 Rules That The Particles Follow
This relates particularly to the grouping together of quarks.

The “bound states” must be colour-neutral.

This means that only two types of groupings are
possible; 3 quarks (or 3 anti-quarks), or a quark-
antiquark pair. The particles of the first type are
called baryons, and the most familiar examples
are the proton and the neutron. The second type is
the mesons. Together they are called hadrons.

As a consequence of this, the bound states can only

have integral charges (0, ±1, ±2).

There are also other rules, for example about spin,

which must also be obeyed.
 Matter
 Hadrons – anything made of quarks
 Baryons – made of three quarks
 Mesons – made of two quarks
(quark and anti-quark pair)
 Some Familiar Particles
Example: The proton has a charge of +1. It
is a baryon, so it is made up of 3 quarks. u
+⅔
Since the up quark has a charge of +⅔ and the
down quark has a charge of -⅓, the only way to
make up a proton is uud. (⅔ + ⅔ - ⅓ = 1).
u
+⅔

The quarks will be one each of rgb, making d

the proton colour-neutral, and all the rules -⅓
are satisfied.
Confused?
http://home.web.cern.ch/about/
updates/2013/07/higgs-boson-one-
year
 Activity 3
 A proton is three quarks uud:
 Show that its charge is +1
 What combination of quarks must make up
a neutron?
 The proton is the only particle made from
three quarks that is considered stable. Why
is this so and what happens to other
particles if they are unstable?
 Symmetry and Prediction
How can the Quark Lepton model be
considered symmetrical?

Why do we talk about generations?

 HW: Fundamental Forces
 Research what is meant by each of the four
fundamental forces
 Discuss their range, relative strength and
what they act upon
 Present this information in an imaginative
format of your choice.
 Activity 5
Summing up…How did we learn
these points?
 To know how the idea of fundamental particles
has changed
 To know the current best theory is based on 12
fundamental particles
 To consider the variation in mass and charge of
these 12 particles
 To discuss why the standard model is considered
symmetrical
17 particles