On October 8, the winners of the Nobel Prize in Physics were announced. Peter W. Higgs and François Englert, two theoretical physicists, were awarded the prize for their contributions to the Standard Model of physics and the prediction of the Higgs Boson.
Peter W. Higgs, right, and François Englert at a conference in Switzerland on July 4, 2012. Fabrice Coffini/ A.F.P. via the New York Times.
In 1964, six scientists came up with a theory of how matter is imbued with mass. Their thinking was that we all live in an “energy soup” called the Higgs field (named after the physicist who proposed the idea). When particles move through the field, they gain mass. Without it, everything would move at the speed of light and atoms would never have formed (everything would basically act as a photon, which carries no mass).
Computer simulation of particle traces from an LHC collision in which a Higgs Boson is produced. (c) CERN. Image credit: Lucas Taylor via the European Organization for Nuclear Research.
This idea had one catch: if this were true, the field would produce an elusive particle that would only exist for miniscule fractions of a second. This particle thus named the Higgs Boson. The only problem was that, although Higgs was able to describe it as a spinless particle that popped in and out of existence, he had no idea how massive it would be which made it almost impossible to detect.
Despite this roadblock, the theory was added to the standard model: a series of equations that govern how the universe works. It was effectively able to link the weak nuclear force with electromagnetic force and make other progress in particle physics, yet its existence was never confirmed. It made sense, yet no one was able to prove it was true.
Video about the Higgs Boson: http://nyti.ms/15lfeTZ
This sparked a 40 year long search. For decades, researches smashed particles together in colliders, trying to detect the mysterious speck. At times, data was thought to indicate its presence, but it was never strong enough to be proved. It was infamously named the “God Particle” by the news media after a permutation of physicist Leon Lederman’s calling it the “goddamn particle” (because it was so hard to find).
Calling it the God Particle was actually somewhat accurate. Its discovery would hopefully allow scientists to uncover mysteries such as the nature of dark matter and dark energy and why the universe is expanding. Questions such as why the universe is made up of matter instead of antimatter might be answered. Studying it might also shed light on our future and the end of the universe.
Scientists in Geneva applauded the discovery of a subatomic particle that looks like the Higgs boson. Photo credit: Denis Balibouse via the New York Times.
Finally, after years of searching, on July 2, 2012, the discovery of the Higgs Boson was announced in Geneva, Switzerland. Two teams of researchers, one using the Large Hadron Collider at the European Organization for Nuclear Research and another at Fermilab in Illinois were finally able to confirm its existence after analyzing data from years of collisions. They had previously found “Higgslike” particles, but could never confirm that it was the Higgs itself. Finally they had detected a particle and had been able to measure its mass at about 126 billion electron volts. It was confirmed to be the Higgs!!!
This announcement validated what scientists had had faith in for 40 years. The two surviving members of the original team, Englert and Higgs, were proved correct! The announcement was so overwhelming, Higgs went off on a week long sabbatical without telling anyone where he was going to take in the news (he never expected its existence to be confirmed during his lifetime)! Because of their astounding prediction, they were awarded the Nobel Prize. They will be honored in Stockholm with a $1.2 million prize (which, when you think about it, isn’t all that much for a whole lifetime of dedication to an idea). Congratulations to all involved!
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