A Centennial of Protons
In the modern and exciting world of particle physics, in which scientists talk of Higgs bosons and supersymmetry, it would be natural for someone to dismiss the common proton as a particle too pedestrian to be interesting. Yet in the centennial year of the announcement of its discovery, studies of the humble nucleus of the hydrogen atom continue to teach us fascinating lessons about the subatomic world. As recently as 2018, scientists found themselves unable to definitively determine as simple a parameter as the radius of the proton. And uncertainties in the detailed internal structure of the proton continue to be the dominant limitation of precision measurements conducted at such particle accelerators as the Large Hadron Collider. Indeed, the final story of the proton has yet to be told.
- Research Organization:
- Fermi National Accelerator Lab. (FNAL), Batavia, IL (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), High Energy Physics (HEP)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC02-07CH11359
- OSTI ID:
- 1632204
- Report Number(s):
- FERMILAB-PUB-19-681-PPD; oai:inspirehep.net:1757485
- Journal Information:
- Phys.Teacher, Vol. 57, Issue 6
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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