What is the new fundamental force?

In physics, there are four observed fundamental interactions (also known as fundamental forces) that form the basis of all known interactions in nature: gravitational, electromagnetic, strong nuclear, and weak nuclear forces. Another proposal is a new weak force mediated by W′ and Z′ bosons.

Are muons fundamental?

The muon is one of the fundamental subatomic particles, the most basic building blocks of the universe as described in the Standard Model of particle physics.

Is there a 5th fundamental force?

Although the researchers found no signs of a fifth force, they did determine a new limit, 10 times stricter than before, on how strong such a force could be. The NIST team believes that their innovative experimental setup will allow them to make even more precise measurements in the future.

Why is the muon important?

Muons – unstable elementary particles – provide scientists with important insights into the structure of matter. They provide information about processes in modern materials, about the properties of elementary particles and the nature of our physical world.

What is the name of the new force?

Around the year 2000, one group proposed a new force, called quintessence, to explain the then-recent discovery of dark energy. In the 1980s, a group of physicists at MIT said they’d found a fifth force, dubbed hypercharge, that served as a kind of anti-gravity.

Is muon a lepton?

The charged leptons are the electrons, muons, and taus. Each of these types has a negative charge and a distinct mass. Electrons, the lightest leptons, have a mass only 1/1,840 that of a proton. Muons are heavier, having more than 200 times as much mass as electrons.

Is muon a meson?

The muon is an unstable subatomic particle with a mean lifetime of 2.2 μs, much longer than many other subatomic particles. Formerly, muons were called “mu mesons”, but are not classified as mesons by modern particle physicists (see § History), and that name is no longer used by the physics community.

How do muons interact with matter?

Muons, being charged particles, interact with matter by ionizing it. The loss of energy by muons passing throught he atmosphere is proportional to the amout of matter they traverse. The medium is usually characterized by its density (g/cm3) times the distance traveled in centimeters.

How can we use muons?

Since muons are much more deeply penetrating than X-rays, muon tomography can be used to image through much thicker material than x-ray based tomography such as CT scanning. The muon flux at the Earth’s surface is such that a single muon passes through an area the size of a human hand per second.

Which forces can influence muons?

magnetic fields
Like the electron, the muon acts like a tiny magnet and therefore gets influenced by magnetic fields. When placed in an external magnetic field, the muon wobbles.

What does the muon g-2 experiment tell us?

The UK’s Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) said the result “provides strong evidence for the existence of an undiscovered sub-atomic particle or new force”. But the results from the Muon g-2 experiment don’t add up to a conclusive discovery yet.

What can we learn from this landmark muon measurement result?

This landmark result, made with unprecedented precision, confirms a discrepancy that has been gnawing at researchers for decades. The strong evidence that muons deviate from the Standard Model calculation might hint at exciting new physics.

Do muons diverge from the Standard Model prediction?

The first result from the Muon g-2 experiment at Fermilab confirms the result from the experiment performed at Brookhaven National Lab two decades ago. Together, the two results show strong evidence that muons diverge from the Standard Model prediction. Image: Ryan Postel, Fermilab/Muon g-2 collaboration

What is the cause of the muon paradox?

This might be caused by a force of nature that’s completely new to science. No one yet knows what this potential new force does, other than influence muon particles. Theoretical physicists believe that it might also be associated with an as-yet undiscovered sub-atomic particle.