Forces of NatureThis is a new edition of Paul Davies' very highly regarded text on high-energy particle physics aimed at the scientifically educated general reader. Since the appearance of the first edition in 1979 there have been many major developments in the field, and the author has taken this opportunity to bring the text completely up to date. Paul Davies includes details of one of the most significant of these developments, the experimental discovery in 1983 of the W and Z intermediate vector bosons, and discusses the implications for the eventual unification of the four forces of nature. In addition to this, the discovery of the top and bottom quarks, the details and predictions of modern grand unified theories (GUTs), and the application of the results of high-energy physics to studies of the very early universe are all included. |
Contents
The structure of matter | 22 |
Inside the nucleus | 53 |
Nuclear forces | 78 |
Symmetry in the microworld | 104 |
The road to unification | 133 |
| 168 | |
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Common terms and phrases
acceleration alpha particle angular momentum annihilation antimatter antiparticles baryon baryon number beta decay binding energy body bosons charged particles conservation laws Dirac direction effect electric and magnetic electric charge electric current electric field electric repulsion electrically neutral electromagnetic field electromagnetic force electromagnetic wave emission emitted energy levels equation example existence experiments explained fact fermions forces of nature frequency fundamental gamma ray gluons gravity hadrons hyperons isotopic spin known lepton number leptons magnetic field mathematical matter meson monopoles motion muon neutrinos neutron neutrons and protons Newton's nuclear force nucleons nucleus orbital pair parity physicists physics pions positron produced properties protons and neutrons quantity quantum mechanics quantum theory quarks radiation rest mass rotation Section space speed of light strange particles strong force strong interaction structure subatomic particles ticles tion transmutation uncertainty unified universe vector virtual photons wavelength weak force weak interaction Yukawa's zero