An ATLAS candidate event for the Higgs boson (H) decaying to two bottom quarks (b), in association with a W boson decaying to a muon (µ) and a neutrino (v). (Image: ATLAS/CERN)
(Image: CERN)
Geneva, 28 August. Six years after its discovery, the Higgs boson has at last been observed decaying to fundamental particles known as bottom quarks. The finding, presented today at CERN 1 by the ATLAS and CMS collaborations at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), is consistent with the hypothesis that the all-pervading quantum field behind the Higgs boson also gives mass to the bottom quark. Both teams have submitted their results for publication today. The Standard Model of particle physics predicts that about 60% of the time a Higgs boson will decay to a pair of bottom quarks, the second-heaviest of the six flavours of quarks. Testing this prediction is crucial because the result would either lend support to the Standard Model - which is built upon the idea that the Higgs field endows quarks and other fundamental particles with mass - or rock its foundations and point to new physics. Spotting this common Higgs-boson decay channel is anything but easy, as the six-year period since the discovery of the boson has shown.
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