PHENOMENOLOGY OF ELECTROWEAK INTERACTIONS
Academic year and teacher
If you can't find the course description that you're looking for in the above list,
please see the following instructions >>
- Versione italiana
- Academic year
- 2018/2019
- Teacher
- MASSIMILIANO FIORINI
- Credits
- 6
- Didactic period
- Secondo Semestre
- SSD
- FIS/04
Training objectives
- Objective of the course is to present a detailed overview on the phenomenology of electroweak interactions, starting from results of the last century up to the most recent discoveries.
During the course, the student will acquire advanced knowledge on elementary particle physics, in particular on topics which are at the forefront of research in the experimental and theoretical fields of the Standard Model of electroweak interactions.
The student will acquire abilities like the calculation of quantities used in particle physics, and the capability to follow seminars, conference reports and articles on particle physics and weak interactions research. Prerequisites
- The knowledge of basic quantum mechanics (at the level provided by the Sakurai or Dirac textbooks), and basic knowledge of elementary particle physics (at the level provided by the Perkins textbook).
Course programme
- The course is divided in 6 modules. The main topics are listed below:
1. The electroweak sector of the Standard Model [6 hours]
- Relativistic notation and gauge invariance
- Standard Model lagrangian
- Weak interactions
- Beta decay
- Weak charged currents
- Parity violation
- Helicity and chirality
- Measurement of neutrino helicity
2. Discovery of the weak neutral currents and vector bosons [8 hours]
- Weak neutral currents
- Gargamelle bubble chamber
- Discovery of weak neutral currents
- Electroweak unification
- Electroweak interactions
- Determination of weak mixing angle
- The CHARM2 experiment
- Electroweak theory predictions
- Vector bosons production
- SppS collider and UA1/UA2 experiments
- Vector bosons discovery
3. Precision tests of electroweak theory [8 hours]
- The LEP e SLC electron-positron colliders
- Precision measurement of luminosity
- Beam energy calibration and systematic effects
- The LEP and SLC detectors
- Events selection
- Measurement of Z mass and width, cross sections and asymmetries
- Measurement of the number of neutrino families
- Measurements at LEP-II
4. Search for the Standard Model Higgs boson [8 hours]
- Spontaneous symmetry breaking and Higgs mechanism
- Higgs field couplings
- Search for the Higgs boson at LEP
- Search for the Higgs boson at the Tevatron
- Higgs production processes
- Higgs decay branching ratios
- The LHC collider
- The ATLAS and CMS experiments
- Higgs boson discovery
- Measurements of mass, width, quantum numbers and couplings
5. Flavour oscillations and CP violation in K, D and B mesons [10 hours]
- Phenomenology of flavour oscillations
- Discrete symmetries and the CPT theorem
- CP violation
- Neutral K mesons: strangeness oscillations, regeneration
- Discovery of CP violation
- Direct CP violation
- Neutral B mesons: oscillation, time-dependent CP violation
- Asymmetric B factories
- The CKM matrix and the unitarity triangle
- Measurement of the CKM matrix elements
6. Neutrino masses and oscillations [8 hours]
- Brief history of the neutrino
- Properties of the Standard Model neutrino
- Direct measurements of neutrino mass
- Double beta decay
- Solar and atmospheric neutrinos
- Experiments with reactors and beams
- Phenomenology of neutrino oscillation
- CP violation Didactic methods
- The course consists of theoretical lectures and exercise classes. The lessons take place partly using the blackboard and partly through the projections of slides. The latter will be provided to the student as complementary material.
Learning assessment procedures
- The examination consists in an oral test: topics described in the course will be discussed, to verify the knowledge acquired by the student and the ability of linking the different topics described during the lectures.
Reference texts
- Lecture notes. Articles from scientific reviews.
On the electroweak theory, selected chapters from:
G. Kane, “Modern Elementary Particle Physics”, Cambridge University Press
F. Halzen and A. D. Martin, “Quarks and Leptons”, John Wiley & Sons
On experimental measurements: selected chapters from
R. N. Cahn and G. Goldhaber, “The Experimental Foundations of Particle Physics”, Cambridge University Press
A. Bettini, “Introduction to Elementary Particle Physics”, Cambridge University Press
