Download HEP_Theory

Research seminar from HEP
Theory
Antonio Delgado
• 3 faculty members: Profs. Bigi, Kolda
and myself
• 1 postdoc – David Diego
• 5 graduate students: Bryan Dudley,
Joel Griffith, Pokie Olson, Ayan Paul &
Dipajan Ray
• I am actively looking for one student,
Prof. Kolda may and Prof. Bigi is not
• The goal of theoretical particle physics
is to understand the ultimate building
blocks of nature
• The standard model of particle physics
consists of:
quarks
u
d
c
s
t
b
leptons
e
νe
μ
νμ
τ
ντ
vector bosons γ g W Z
higgs boson
h
Not yet discovered!!!
• For that purpose we use the language
of Quantum Field Theory the theory that
results when Quantum Mechanics and
Special Relativity are merged:
• Although very successful from the experimental
point of view some predictions have been
tested to great accuracy, it is far from being a
complete theory:
• the higgs is still to be discovered
• the rôle of the higgs itself introduces certain
problems into the theory
• Therefore theorist go beyond the SM in order to
address questions of physics at TeV scales
• Let me summarize the research interests of the
other two senior members of the group:

Professor Bigi is interested in flavour physics,
i.e., the physics that deals with the interaction
between the different families of quarks and
leptons. These processes are rare in the SM and
evidence for new physics can come in an excess
of some of this effects. He is also a susy fan.

Professor Kolda is interested in supersymmetry
as a direction for physics BSM. Supersymmetry
predicts the existence of new particles to be
discovered at the LHC and provides us with a
nice explanation for the EW scale.
• In my case I am interested in the EW
sector and studying models that may
provide us with an explanation of what
the higgs is and why it is much lighter
than the Planck mass
• There are models where the higgs is
a fundamental particle and the scale
is protected by a symmetry: susy, little
higgs
• There are even models without a
higgs
• My work is on the study of different models,
their viability both on the theoretical side, i.e. no
inconsistencies, and on the experimental side,
i.e. they do not contradict any measurement we
have already done.
• It is a great opportunity that LHC will start to
collect data next years and to probe the TeV
scale so it will be a challenging time for particle
physics .
• Because of that we have to take advantage of
our experimental colleagues that have a major
rôle in CMS
• As a last word I should say that the
group is also interested on any interplay
of particle physics and cosmology
taking into account that there is a very
good astro group here in ND.