What is Higgs: Definition and 682 Discussions

In the Standard Model of particle physics, the Higgs mechanism is essential to explain the generation mechanism of the property "mass" for gauge bosons. Without the Higgs mechanism, all bosons (one of the two classes of particles, the other being fermions) would be considered massless, but measurements show that the W+, W−, and Z0 bosons actually have relatively large masses of around 80 GeV/c2. The Higgs field resolves this conundrum. The simplest description of the mechanism adds a quantum field (the Higgs field) that permeates all space to the Standard Model. Below some extremely high temperature, the field causes spontaneous symmetry breaking during interactions. The breaking of symmetry triggers the Higgs mechanism, causing the bosons it interacts with to have mass. In the Standard Model, the phrase "Higgs mechanism" refers specifically to the generation of masses for the W±, and Z weak gauge bosons through electroweak symmetry breaking. The Large Hadron Collider at CERN announced results consistent with the Higgs particle on 14 March 2013, making it extremely likely that the field, or one like it, exists, and explaining how the Higgs mechanism takes place in nature.
The mechanism was proposed in 1962 by Philip Warren Anderson, following work in the late 1950s on symmetry breaking in superconductivity and a 1960 paper by Yoichiro Nambu that discussed its application within particle physics.
A theory able to finally explain mass generation without "breaking" gauge theory was published almost simultaneously by three independent groups in 1964: by Robert Brout and François Englert; by Peter Higgs; and by Gerald Guralnik, C. R. Hagen, and Tom Kibble. The Higgs mechanism is therefore also called the Brout–Englert–Higgs mechanism, or Englert–Brout–Higgs–Guralnik–Hagen–Kibble mechanism, Anderson–Higgs mechanism, Anderson–Higgs–Kibble mechanism, Higgs–Kibble mechanism by Abdus Salam and ABEGHHK'tH mechanism (for Anderson, Brout, Englert, Guralnik, Hagen, Higgs, Kibble, and 't Hooft) by Peter Higgs. The Higgs mechanism in electrodynamics was also discovered independently by Eberly and Reiss in reverse
as the "gauge" Dirac field mass gain due to the artificially displaced electromagnetic field as a Higgs field.On 8 October 2013, following the discovery at CERN's Large Hadron Collider of a new particle that appeared to be the long-sought Higgs boson predicted by the theory, it was announced that Peter Higgs and François Englert had been awarded the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physics.

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  1. W

    Weinberg: `superparticles don't need Higgs to give them mass'

    Hi All, I've been watching the Weinberg youtube video: and I have two questions. 1) He says at some point that although there is a symmetry which wants the standard model particles to be massless (and which is then spontaneously broken by the Higgs mechanism), this symmetry does not...
  2. G

    Why did Hawking bet against the Higgs?

    Seeing as it was so integral to the standard model and since the SM is so remarkably successful, aside from its inability to predict the correct amount of vacuum energy, and seeing as no experiment has proved it wrong, why did Hawking bet against it? It was only a 100 dollars so maybe he was...
  3. W

    125 GeV Higgs and the Hierarchy Problem

    Can someone please explain to me what a 125 GeV Higgs implies for the hierarchy problem (why the weak force is 10^{32} times stronger than gravity)?
  4. G

    The Higgs as the cause of Time?

    Sorry for yet another one about the Higgs from a layman, and a perhaps tricky title. I was discussing with a friend and he came with this reasoning: Without the interaction with the Higgs field all the particles would be massless. Meaning that they would travel at the speed of light. Meaning...
  5. S

    What Happens to Higgs-Bosons Without Conservation of Mass?

    If there is not a conservation of mass, then what happens to higgs-bosons? Are they destroyed, or decay into something else (if that is even possible...)?
  6. T

    Unraveling the Mysteries of the Higgs Field

    1. What is the "cause" of the field and how can the Higgs field be flat and permeate all of space or is it a property of space itself? 2. Will the field weaken as space expands? In other words, as the distance between objects approaches infinity, will that impact the Higgs field? 3...
  7. M

    Higgs Boson, String Theory and Gravity

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  8. W

    Higgs field popular descriptions

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  9. L

    Interaction Between the Higgs and the Graviton

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  10. A

    Uncovering the Higgs Particle: A Journey Through Particle Collisions

    so they take the total energy of thos decays particles like quarks and add them to see how much energy they have, eventyally after millions of collisions they would find out if there was a higgs particle there? is this kind of correct?
  11. 2

    Exploring the Possibility of a Higgs Force and Its Implications for a 5th Force

    Since Higgs boson is a boson and they are said to be the force carriers, wouldn't that imply that there's a new, 5th force?
  12. F

    Can Gravity Affect the Higgs Field and Vice Versa?

    Can anyone speak to what effects gravity would have on the Higgs field or vice versa? As I understand, the Higgs field exists as a non-zero base energy field. A second assumption is being passed around that this field is "constant value across the entire universe", which simply doesn't compute...
  13. photonkid

    How Does the Higgs Field Relate to Mass and the Universe?

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  14. P

    How does the Higgs field differentiate between particles giving specific masses

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  15. tom.stoer

    Universe Without Higgs: What Would it Look Like?

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  16. B

    QED vs Higgs: Mass of Electrons and More

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  17. J

    Higgs Boson and Supersymmetry?

    Can someone explain to me in layman's terms why the Higgs Boson needs to be less than 130 GeV to prove Supersymmetry exists?
  18. E

    Mass, Gravity and the Higgs Mechanism

    I am led to believe that while the Higgs Mechanism is now almost certainly the explanation for mass, it gives no insight whatsoever into gravity. I really really hope that I am incorrect. There's got to be some speculation out there. What do the boson and the field have to do with gravity...
  19. B

    What are the properties of the Higgs field?

    Does the Higgs field of a fermion exclusively attract just like a gravitational field? Or can it also have repulsion? Is the Higgs field separate from the gravitational field or is the Higgs field the cause of gravity? If the Higgs field is separate from the gravitational field, then what is its...
  20. 2

    Where does higgs boson get its mass?

    Does it interact with other higgs bosons? Do they also do the same? It cannot go ad infinitum or can it?
  21. L

    If the Boson Higgs Boson only exists for >.< long

    If the Boson Higgs Boson, only exists for a millionth, of a millionth, of a millionth, of a millionth of a millionth, of a millionth, of a millionth, of a second - or even lessera... And all matter has mass because of it... According to my wall clock, this means that several billion...
  22. J

    Could the Higgs boson have been discovered with earlier accelerators?

    Could the Higgs boson have been confirmed with earlier accelerators? The LEP collider operated at a maximum of 209 GeV. Could it have been used to confirm the existence of the 125.3 GeV Higgs boson? I also read on Wikipedia that the CERN teams were apparently examining the 145–466 GeV range...
  23. J

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  24. B

    How can Higgs mechanism and gravitation coexist?

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  25. R

    Could the Higgs field be displaced to create motion through space?

    Ok, I never wanted to be the guy posting a ridiculous question on physorg. but here it goes. If the Higgs field is everywhere could it be displaced allowing for forward momentum perhaps creating virtual mass in front or behind an object?
  26. R

    Why the particle that was discovered has to be higgs

    why the particle that was believed to be found has to be higgs boson and not just any other fundamental particle that make up preivously thought to be fundamental particles i.e quarks or leptons. Or it was just only one particles that was missing in the standard model i.e higgs boson. Thanks.
  27. J

    Higgs Field and Einstein's Special Relativity

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  28. F

    Understanding the Connection between the Higgs Field and Gravity

    Hi can someone explain to me how the higgs field creates gravity, or how is it related to it? I mean, if the higgs field is responsible for mass, then it should be somewhat responsible for gravity. Right?
  29. A

    Can someone explain the significance of the Higgs boson?

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  30. R

    Higgs Mass and Other Particles

    If the Higgs boson imparts mass to other particles, does it not itself lose mass and energy in the process? As it does its thing, could not the Higgs than transform itself to a different particle, one that may have already been seen, perhaps down to a point particle with no mass?
  31. E

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  32. R

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  33. lpetrich

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  34. M

    Did a Higgs Boson trigger the big bang?

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  35. BWV

    Can someone explain the basics of these Higgs graphs?

    The 5-sigma event that denotes the "discovery" of the Higgs refers to a spike around 125 GeV against some polynomial curve fit against the data? and what is events / GeV - what are the other events at the various energy levels?
  36. N

    Electromagnetism & Higgs Boson

    I want to get caught up in this discovery and of course it would more "legitimate" if I better understood what the standard model is.So I'll ask some slightly random "Yes/No" questions. Are the "Gauge Bosons/Force Carriers" that have mass "supposed to be" mass-less? But from...
  37. Ibix

    Understanding the Relationship Between Mass and the Higgs Field

    Perhaps a Higgnorant question? Anyway. Am I correct in thinking that the mass of a Higgs-field-interacting particle is the energy stored in the Higgs field by that interaction?
  38. D

    Can the Higgs Boson Help Solve the Mystery of Neutrino Mass?

    In reading through all the info that is coming out from today's big announcement, it seems as they still can't peg the mass of the higgs boson as much of their data comes in the form of decay paths that include neutrinos of unknown mass. My question is whether when they peg the exact mass of...
  39. K

    How can the Higgs Boson have a mass?

    How can the Higgs Boson have a mass if it's what determines mass? Do we have any insight to why its mass is very large?
  40. C

    Does the discovery of the Higgs Boson disprove String Theory?

    From what I understand, the Higgs Boson was the last missing piece of the Standard Model (12 indivisible particles, 4 forces). Now that the Standard Model is complete, has String Theory been disproved? Is there a conflict between the Standard Model and String Theory?
  41. R

    Does Higgs Boson rule out spacetime curvature?

    Hi there: I've learned that there's no such thing as gravity, just the curvature of spacetime that makes objects that are close to each other act like it existed. Does Higgs Bossom discovery tell us that there is a gravity force after all?
  42. G

    An Inquiry as to the Higgs Boson's Mass

    The Higgs particle has a mass of about 125 GeV. If interaction with the higgs field assigns a particle its mass, how does the Higgs field assign itself mass?
  43. P

    Higgs Bosons in another dimension?

    Hi Could someone tell me if Higgs bosons exist in another dimension or if there's simply something i don't understand about their existence in our timespace? Meaning - from what I understand - the recent experiments at the LHC smashed together particles with enough energy to create a Higgs...
  44. F

    What is the role of the Higgs in determining the mass of particles?

    Hi, First time I've posted on this website. I keep hearing & reading news stories that protons are made of sub-atomic particles, one of which is the Higgs-Boson. The story continue with how many times the Higgs weighs more than a proton. I don't get that last bit. How can the whole...
  45. A

    What gives the Higgs boson its mass?

    With the recent experimental evidence that the Higgs boson likely does exist, and that the Higgs field may well be responsible for "giving" mass to all matter, I am curious how we theorize what gives the Higgs particle it's own mass. Warning: I am not a physicist so be gentle :-)
  46. D

    A couple of questions about Higgs Boson

    Hi all, I have a couple of noob questions regarding the Higgs Boson (HB) and it's recent "discovery" 1. if the HB is so heavy (I understood it is heavier than a proton) and permeates the universe, why is it so difficult to detect it or produce it ? 2. Why do we have to collide protons...
  47. MTd2

    HIGGS DISCOVERY AT 126GeV Shaposhnikov - Wetterich 100% SPOT ON

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  48. M

    Exploring the Connection Between Higgs Field and Decoherence

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  49. D

    How Many Kinds of Mass Does the Higgs Boson Mediate?

    Ok, newb question. I understand that the Higgs mediates 'mass'. But the graviton (if it exists) mediates gravitation, right? So I assume this means mass is being treated separately, with the Higgs mediating inertial mass and the graviton mediating active gravitational mass, right? So what about...
  50. S

    Higgs & Inflaton: Does New Boson Discovery Change Anything?

    So now CERN have announced a 4.9 sigma discovery of a new Boson most likely the Higgs does this make the existence of the inlaton more pluasible , less plausible or make no difference whatsoever?
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