Particle Physics Topics

From the smallest building blocks of matter to the deepest symmetries of the universe — an overview from simple to complex.

01 · Fundamentals

Elementary Particles

What is matter made of at the smallest scale? Quarks, leptons, and bosons are the indivisible building blocks that make up everything — from atoms to stars. No microscope on Earth is powerful enough to see them directly.

Introductory
See the overview →
Proton (uud) u d u Gluon
02 · Forces

The Four Fundamental Forces

Gravity, electromagnetism, and the strong and weak interactions — these four forces govern the entire universe. Each is mediated by its own exchange particles and acts on an entirely different scale.

Fundamentals
See details →
G Gravity γ Electro- magnetic g Strong W/Z Weak
03 · Model

The Standard Model

The most complete picture of physics we have: 17 particles, four interactions, one theory. The Standard Model describes almost everything with astonishing precision — except gravity and dark matter.

Intermediate
Explore the Standard Model →
I II III Bosons u c t d s b e⁻ μ⁻ τ⁻ νe νμ ντ γ W± Z g H Q Q L ν 17 particles — 1 model
04 · Phenomena

Quantum Effects

The double-slit experiment, quantum tunneling, entanglement, teleportation — four experiments whose results defy every everyday intuition, yet remain exactly reproducible. Switch between the experiment states yourself.

Intermediate
Explore the effects →
Double-Slit Interference
05 · Theory

Quantum Field Theory

Particles aren't tiny balls — they're excitations of quantized fields that permeate all of space. A photon is a vibration of the electromagnetic field, present everywhere at once until it's measured.

Advanced
See details →
Particle (excitation) Quantized Field φ(x,t)
06 · Symmetry

Symmetries & Conservation Laws

Emmy Noether's theorem links every continuous symmetry to a conserved quantity: time invariance → conservation of energy, spatial translation → conservation of momentum. Symmetry is the deepest reason behind the laws of nature.

Advanced
See details →
U(1) Symmetry Sym. Cons. Time Energy Space Momentum Noether's Theorem
07 · Strong Force

Quark Confinement & QCD

Quarks never exist alone — the strong force between them grows with distance, like an elastic band. Try to pull quarks apart, and the stored energy instantly creates a new quark pair. Quantum chromodynamics describes this color charge using eight types of gluons.

Advanced
See details →
q red q̄ anti-green Flux tube (color field) q q̄ → spontaneous pair creation Confinement
08 · Unification

Electroweak Unification

At very high energies, electromagnetism and the weak interaction merge into a single force — the electroweak force. Weinberg, Salam, and Glashow showed that γ, W±, and Z are different manifestations of the same underlying theory.

Complex
See details →
E → γ W/Z ~100 GeV (W/Z, SppS 1983) Electro- weak
09 · Higgs

The Higgs Mechanism

Why do particles have mass? The Higgs field permeates all of space and spontaneously breaks electroweak symmetry. Particles that interact with it acquire inertial mass as a result. The Higgs boson is the excitation of this field — confirmed at CERN in 2012.

Complex
See the Higgs boson →
Vacuum symmetric phase (unstable) V(φ) Mexican-Hat Potential
10 · Frontiers

Beyond the Standard Model

The Standard Model explains neither dark matter, nor gravity at the quantum level, nor why matter dominates over antimatter in the universe. Supersymmetry, string theory, and Grand Unified Theories search for the next deeper layer — so far without experimental confirmation.

Cutting Edge
See details →
Unknown / BSM QFT SM Higgs SUSY Strings GUT Dark Matter ? ? Open: gravity, dark matter, …