Lesson 11.6: Particle Physics & Standard Model - Summary

Key Concepts: Particle Physics & Standard Model

Fundamental Particles

  • Matter is made of quarks (make up protons/neutrons) and leptons (electrons, neutrinos).
  • There are 6 quarks: up, down, charm, strange, top, bottom.
  • There are 6 leptons: electron, muon, tau, and their corresponding neutrinos.

The Four Fundamental Forces

  • Strong Nuclear Force: Holds quarks together inside protons/neutrons. Mediated by gluons.
  • Electromagnetic Force: Between charged particles. Mediated by photons.
  • Weak Nuclear Force: Responsible for radioactive beta decay. Mediated by W and Z bosons.
  • Gravitational Force: Between masses. Hypothetically mediated by gravitons (unconfirmed).

The Higgs Boson

  • The Higgs field gives mass to fundamental particles. The Higgs boson was discovered in 2012 at CERN.

Antimatter: Every particle has an antiparticle (same mass, opposite charge). When they meet: annihilation → pure energy.

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