| Unit name | Theoretical Particle Physics |
|---|---|
| Unit code | PHYSM0800 |
| Credit points | 10 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Professor. Dave Newbold |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
Normally PHYS20002, PHYS20003 and the element Quarks and Leptons 309 or equivalents |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | School of Physics |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
We discuss the ways in which quarks are bound together to form hadrons and the classification of hadrons into families according to approximate symmetries such as isospin. The lightest hadrons in each family (apart from the proton) decay via the weak interaction. We study the description of these weak decay processes. The QN "mixing" of quark flavours via the "Cabibbo mechanism" is presented, giving a unified picture of quark and lepton weak interactions. We look at violation of discrete symmetries (Parity, Time Reversal and Charge Conjugation) in the weak interaction, leading to the concept of helicity in the interactions of relativistic particles. Finally we present the theory of the unified weak interaction.
