String Theory: Types of Particles

By Andrew Zimmerman Jones and Daniel Robbins from String Theory For Dummies

Physicists have found a large number of particles, and one thing that proves useful is that they can be broken
down into categories based on their properties. Physicists have found a lot of ways to do this, but here are
some of the most relevant categories to string theory.

According to quantum mechanics, particles have a property known as spin. This isn’t an actual motion of the
particle, but in a quantum mechanical sense, it means that the particle always interacts with other particles as if
it’s rotating in a certain way.

In quantum physics, spin has a numerical value that can be either an integer (0, 1, 2, and so on) or half-integer
(1/2, 3/2, and so on). Particles that have an integer spin are called bosons, while particles that have half-
integer spin are called fermions.

Particles of force: Bosons

Bosons, named after Satyendra Nath Bose, are particles that have an integer value of quantum spin. The
bosons that are known act as carriers of forces in quantum field theory, as the photon does in this figure. The
Standard Model of particle physics predicts five fundamental bosons, four of which have been observed:

 Photon

 Gluon (there are eight types of gluons)

 Z boson

 W boson (actually two particles — the W + and W– bosons)

 Higgs boson (this one hasn’t been found yet)

In addition, many physicists believe that there probably exists a boson called the graviton, which is related to
gravity. Composite bosons can also exist; these are formed by combining together an even number of different
fermions.

For example, a carbon-12 atom contains six protons and six neutrons, all of which are fermions. The nucleus
of a carbon-12 atom is, therefore, a composite boson. Mesons, on the other hand, are particles made up of
exactly two quarks, so they are also composite bosons.

Particles of matter: Fermions

Fermions, named after Enrico Fermi, are particles that have a half-integer value of quantum spin. Unlike
bosons, they obey the Pauli exclusion principle, which means that multiple fermions can’t exist in the same
quantum state.

While bosons are seen as mediating the forces of nature, fermions are particles that are a bit more “solid” and
are what we tend to think of matter particles. Quarks are fermions.

In addition to quarks, there is a second family of fermions called leptons. Leptons are elementary particles that
can’t (so far as scientists know) be broken down into smaller particles. The electron is a lepton, but the
Standard Model of particle physics tells us that there are actually three generations of particles, each heavier
than the last.

The three generations of particles were predicted by theoretical considerations before they were discovered by
experiment, an excellent example of how theory can precede experiment in quantum field theory.
Also within each generation of particles are two flavors of quarks. This table shows the 12 types of
fundamental fermions, all of which have been observed. The numbers shown are the masses, in terms of
energy, for each of the known particles. (Neutrinos have virtually, but not exactly, zero mass.)

Elementary Particle Families for Fermions

Quarks Leptons

First Generation Up Quark Down Quark Electron Neutrino Electron

3 MeV 7 MeV 0.5 MeV

Second Generation Charm Quark Strange Quark Muon Neutrino Muon

1.2 GeV 120 MeV 106 MeV

Third Generation Top Quark Bottom Quark Tau Neutrino Tau

174 GeV 4.3 GeV 1.8 GeV

There are also, of course, composite fermions, made when an odd number of fermions combine to create a
new particle, such as how protons and neutrons are formed by combining quarks.

Types of Particle

Below are some very brief details of different types of particle mentioned throughout this web-site.
Although this is by no means a definitive description of each of the particles, it should serve as a
basic outline to those unfamiliar with any of the particles which they may come across throughout
this site. Further details can be found in any good particle physics text book or web-site.

Baryon

Baryons are particles made up of 3 quarks (see below)

Examples include the proton (p), neutron (n)

 Kaon (K)

Kaons are mesons (see below)

Leptons

There are three types of charged lepton: the electron, muon and tau particle. Each of which has an
associated neutrino: the electron neutrino, the muon neutrino and the tau neutrino. Moreover for
each lepton there is an antiparticle, the positron, the anti-muon and anti-tau. Each of these has
associated with it an antineutrino. The properties of each are summarised below:

PARTICLE SYMBOL MASS ELECTRIC CHARGE SPIN

electron 1
e 0.511 MeV -1 /2
electron neutrino ne 0 MeV 0 1
/2
muon m 105.7 MeV -1 1
/2
muon neutrino nm 0 Mev 0 1
/2
tau t 1784 MeV -1 1
/2
tau neutrino nt 0 MeV 0 1
/2

Mesons

Mesons are particles made up of a quark (see below) and an anti-quark (which is essentially a quark
but with opposite charge)

Examples of mesons are the Kaon , Pion , Psi particles

Muons
Muons are leptons. They have a charge of -1 (electron charge). The muon is 200 times more
massive than the electron. Most of the particles detected by the spark chamber are muons, as they
are very penetrating, and have a long lifetime.

Neutrino

These are massless* particles, which have no charge. There are many, many millions of neutrino's
in the atmosphere. Their main source is thought to be from the Sun.

*Much experimental work is currently being done to determine if the neutrino is in fact massless. It
is suspected that the neutrino may have a very, very small mass, which when added up over all the
neutrinos in the atmosphere, could amount to a large amount of mass. This may constitute the
source of some of the so called 'Dark Matter' present in the universe.

Pions

Also known as pi-meson. The pion is an elementary particle classified as a meson. The pion can be
positively , negatively or neutrally charged. The Charged pions decay into muons and neutrinos.
The neutral pions convert directly into photons:

Positrons

These are identical particles to electrons, having the same characteristics. The only difference being
that they are positively charged

Quarks

One of the fundamental constituents which make up matter. Perhaps it is best to give an example:

It is well known that an atom is thought to be made up of neutrons, protons and electrons. If you
could probe to see what a proton or a neutron consisted of, you would find that each were made up
of three smaller, constituent particles called quarks.
There are six quarks (each with its own flavour) which are known to exist: up (u), down (d), strange
(s), charm (c), bottom (b) and top (t).

In general particles with half integer spin (Fermions) are made up of three quarks, particles with
integer spin (Bosons) are made up of quark-antiquary pairs. For example, the proton is made of a
two u quarks and one d quark, the neutron consists of two d quarks and 1 u quark. The positively
charged pion consists of a u quark and an anti-d quark.

The proton, neutron, and pion are by no means the only particles which are made of quarks. All
strongly interacting particles, known as baryons or mesons, are made of quarks.

Elementary Particles : Readings: particle

physics
fundamental
forces
quarks
 particle physics is the One of the primary goals in modern physics is to answer the question "What is the Universe
search for the made of?" Often that question reduces to "What is matter and what holds it together?" This
continues the line of investigation started by Democritus, Dalton and Rutherford.
fundamental building
blocks of Nature, a Modern physics speaks of fundamental building blocks of Nature, where fundamental takes
reductionist goal on a reductionist meaning of simple and structureless. Many of the particles we have
 elementary particles discussed so far appear simple in their properties. All electrons have the exact same
should be characteristics (mass, charge, etc.), so we call an electron fundamental because they are all
structureless, resulting non-unique.
in simple interactions
The search for the origin of matter means the understanding of elementary particles. And
with the advent of holism, the understanding of elementary particles requires an
understanding of not only their characteristics, but how they interact and relate to other
particles and forces of Nature, the field of physics called particle physics.
 more advanced The study of particles is also a story of advanced technology begins with the search for the
technology lead to the primary constituent. More than 200 subatomic particles have been discovered so far, all
detected in sophisticated particle accelerators. However, most are not fundamental, most are
discovery of hundreds composed of other, simpler particles. For example, Rutherford showed that the atom was
of new particles, composed of a nucleus and orbiting electrons. Later physicists showed that the nucleus was
forcing the search for composed of neutrons and protons. More recent work has shown that protons and neutrons
some underlying are composed of quarks.
principles to unite the Short History of Elementary Particles
chain of particles to
something simpler
Generations of Matter:
 the two most A quark is any of a group of subatomic particles believed to be among the fundamental
fundamental types of constituents of matter. In much the same way that protons and neutrons make up atomic
nuclei, these particles themselves are thought to consist of quarks. Quarks constitute all
particles are quarks hadrons (baryons and mesons)--i.e., all particles that interact by means of the strong force,
and leptons the force that binds the components of the nucleus.
 the quarks and leptons
are divided into 6 According to prevailing theory, quarks have mass and exhibit a spin (i.e., type of intrinsic
flavors corresponding angular momentum corresponding to a rotation around an axis through the particle). Quarks
to three generations of appear to be truly fundamental. They have no apparent structure; that is, they cannot be
resolved into something smaller. Quarks always seem to occur in combination with other
matter quarks or antiquarks, never alone. For years physicists have attempted to knock a quark out
 quarks (and of a baryon in experiments with particle accelerators to observe it in a free state but have not
antiquarks) have yet succeeded in doing so.
electric charges in
units of 1/3 or 2/3's Throughout the 1960s theoretical physicists, trying to account for the ever-growing number
of subatomic particles observed in experiments, considered the possibility that protons and
neutrons were composed of smaller units of matter. In 1961 two physicists, Murray Gell-
Mann of the United States and Yuval Ne`eman of Israel, proposed a particle classification
scheme called the Eightfold Way, based on the mathematical symmetry group SU(3), that
described strongly interacting particles in terms of building blocks. In 1964 Gell-Mann
introduced the concept of quarks as a physical basis for the scheme, adopting the fanciful
term from a passage in James Joyce's novel Finnegans Wake. (The American physicist
George Zweig developed a similar theory independently that same year and called his
fundamental particles "aces.") Gell-Mann's model provided a simple picture in which all
mesons are shown as consisting of a quark and an antiquark and all baryons as composed of
three quarks. It postulated the existence of three types of quarks, distinguished by distinctive
"flavours." These three quark types are now commonly designated as "up" (u), "down" (d),
and "strange" (s). Each carries a fractional electric charge (i.e., a charge less than that of the
electron). The up and down quarks are thought to make up protons and neutrons and are thus
the ones observed in ordinary matter. Strange quarks occur as components of K mesons and
various other extremely short-lived subatomic particles that were first observed in cosmic
rays but that play no part in ordinary matter.

Most problems with quarks were resolved by the introduction of the concept of color, as
formulated in quantum chromodynamics (QCD). In this theory of strong interactions,
developed in 1977, the term color has nothing to do with the colors of the everyday world but
rather represents a special quantum property of quarks. The colors red, green, and blue are
ascribed to quarks, and their opposites, minus-red, minus-green, and minus-blue, to
antiquarks. According to QCD, all combinations of quarks must contain equal mixtures of
these imaginary colors so that they will cancel out one another, with the resulting particle
having no net color. A baryon, for example, always consists of a combination of one red, one
green, and one blue quark. The property of color in strong interactions plays a role analogous
to an electric charge in electromagnetic interactions. Charge implies the exchange of photons
between charged particles. Similarly, color involves the exchange of massless particles called
gluons among quarks. Just as photons carry electromagnetic force, gluons transmit the forces
that bind quarks together. Quarks change their color as they emit and absorb gluons, and the
exchange of gluons maintains proper quark color distribution.
 leptons are a separate Leptons are any member of a class of fermions that respond only to electromagnetic, weak,
class since they do not and gravitational forces and do not take part in strong interactions. Like all fermions, leptons
have a half-integral spin. (In quantum-mechanical terms, spin constitutes the property of
interact with quarks intrinsic angular momentum.) Leptons obey the Pauli exclusion principle, which prohibits
by the strong force any two identical fermions in a given population from occupying the same quantum state.
 leptons have charges Leptons are said to be fundamental particles; that is, they do not appear to be made up of
in units of 1 or 0 smaller units of matter.

Leptons can either carry one unit of electric charge or be neutral. The charged leptons are the
electrons, muons, and taus. Each of these types has a negative charge and a distinct mass.
Electrons, the lightest leptons, have a mass only 0.0005 that of a proton. Muons are heavier,
having more than 200 times as much mass as electrons. Taus, in turn, are approximately
3,700 times more massive than electrons. Each charged lepton has an associated neutral
partner, or neutrino (i.e., electron-, muon-, and tau-neutrino), that has no electric charge and
no significant mass. Moreover, all leptons, including the neutrinos, have antiparticles called
antileptons. The mass of the antileptons is identical to that of the leptons, but all of the other
properties are reversed.

 the up and down The electron is the lightest stable subatomic particle known. It carries a negative charge
quark, electron and which is considered the basic charge of electricity.
 neutrino (leptons)
work together to form An electron is nearly massless. It has a rest mass of 9.1x10 -28 gram, which is only 0.0005 the
normal, everyday mass of a proton. The electron reacts only by the electromagnetic, weak, and gravitational
forces; it does not respond to the short-range strong nuclear force that acts between quarks
matter and binds protons and neutrons in the atomic nucleus. The electron has an antimatter
 note that for every counterpart called the positron. This antiparticle has precisely the same mass and spin, but it
quark or lepton there carries a positive charge. If it meets an electron, both are annihilated in a burst of energy.
is a corresponding Positrons are rare on the Earth, being produced only in high-energy processes (e.g., by
antiparticle. For cosmic rays) and live only for brief intervals before annihilation by electrons that abound
everywhere.
example, there is an
up antiquark, an anti- The electron was the first subatomic particle discovered. It was identified in 1897 by the
electron (called a British physicist J.J. Thomson during investigations of cathode rays. His discovery of
positron) and an anti- electrons, which he initially called corpuscles, played a pivotal role in revolutionizing
neutrino knowledge of atomic structure.

Under ordinary conditions, electrons are bound to the positively charged nuclei of atoms by
the attraction between opposite electric charges. In a neutral atom the number of electrons is
identical to the number of positive charges on the nucleus. Any atom, however, may have
more or fewer electrons than positive charges and thus be negatively or positively charged as
a whole; these charged atoms are known as ions. Not all electrons are associated with atoms.
Some occur in a free state with ions in the form of matter known as plasma.

Fundamental Forces :
 Matter is effected by forces or The first two you are familiar with, gravity is the attractive force between all
interactions (the terms are matter, electromagnetic force describes the interaction of charged particles and
magnetics. Light (photons) is explained by the interaction of electric and
interchangeable) magnetic fields.
 there are four fundamental
forces in the Universe: The strong force binds quarks into protons, neutrons and mesons, and holds the
o gravitation (between nucleus of the atom together despite the repulsive electromagnetic force
particles with mass) between protons. The weak force controls the radioactive decay of atomic
o electromagnetic (between nuclei and the reactions between leptons (electrons and neutrinos).
particles with
Current physics (called quantum field theory) explains the exchange of energy
charge/magnetism) in interactions by the use of force carriers, called bosons. The long range forces
o strong nuclear force have zero mass force carriers, the graviton and the photon. These operate on
(between quarks) scales larger than the solar system. Short range forces have very massive force
o weak nuclear force (that carriers, the W+, W- and Z for the weak force, the gluon for the strong force.
changes quark types) These operate on scales the size of atomic nuclei.

So, although the strong force has the greatest strength, it also has the shortest
range.
Bosons (Force Carriers):
 certain particles play Bosons are the particles which transmits the different forces between the matter particles,
and important role in they normally have a whole number spin, 0, 1 or 2. And Fermions which are matter particles
they often have spin 1/2. Real particles are the ones you are familiar with, all Fermions are
the transfer of force, real particles. The Bosons can sometimes be virtual and sometimes real. Virtual particles are
the bosons or force the particles which transmits the force between the particles, e.g. virtual photon carries the
carriers electromagnetic force between e.g. electrons. They are called virtual particles because they
 the use of virtual can't be directly detected, you can't 'see' them so to speak. But their effect can be noticed, by
particles to carry force e.g. the actual forces between particles.
resolves the action at a
distance problem

Baryons and Mesons:

 the large number of Quarks combine to form the basic building blocks of matter, baryons and mesons. Baryons
new particles are made of three quarks to form the protons and neutrons of atomic nuclei (and also anti-
protons and anti-neutrons). Mesons, made of quark pairs, are usually found in cosmic rays.
discovered in the Notice that the quarks all combine to make charges of -1, 0, or +1.
1950's is resolved by
quark model
 quarks are
fundamental building
blocks to baryons and
mesons, coming
together as triplets or
pairs

 quarks have 1/3 Thus, our current understanding of the structure of the atom is shown below, the atom
charge and bind contains a nucleus surrounded by a cloud of negatively charged electrons. The nucleus is
composed of neutral neutrons and positively charged protons. The opposite charge of the
through the exchange electron and proton binds the atom together with electromagnetic forces.
of gluons of the strong
force
 the many particles of The protons and neutrons are composed of up and down quarks whose fractional charges (2/3
atomic nuclei become and -1/3) combine to produce the 0 or +1 charge of the proton and neutron. The nucleus is
bound together by the nuclear strong force (that overcomes the electromagnetic repulsion of
a simple combination like-charged protons)
of quarks
 unlike electric charge, Quarks in baryons and mesons are bound together by the strong force in the form of the
quarks bind by exchange of gluons. Much like how the electromagnetic force strength is determined by the
exchanging color amount of electric charge, the strong force strength is determined by a new quantity called
charge of three colors, color charge.
blue, red and green
Quarks come in three colors, red, blue and green (they are not actually colored, we just
 gluons carry color to describe their color charge in these terms). So, unlike electromagnetic charges which come in
convert quarks two flavors (positive and negative or north and south poles), color charge in quarks comes in
 due to their fractional three types. And, just to be more confusing, color charge also has its anti-particle nature. So
charge nature, quarks there is anti-red, anti-blue and anti-green.
cannot exist in
isolation Gluons serve the function of carrying color when they interact with quarks. Baryons and
mesons must have a mix of colors such that the result is white. For example, red, blue and
 the strong force binds green make white. Also red and anti-red make white.
quarks like a rubber
band force There can exist no free quarks, i.e. quarks by themselves. All quarks must be bound to
another quark or antiquark by the exchange of gluons. This is called quark confinement. The
exchange of gluons produces a color force field, referring to the assignment of color charge
to quarks, similar to electric charge.

The color force field is unusual in that separating the quarks makes the force field stronger
(unlike electromagnetic or gravity forces which weaken with distance). Energy is needed to
overcome the color force field. That energy increases until a new quark or antiquark is
formed (energy equals mass, E=mc2).
  if energy is used to Two new quarks form and bind to the old quarks to make two new mesons. Thus, none of the
split a quark pair, new quarks were at anytime in isolation. Quarks always travel in pairs or triplets.
quarks are produced,
this is how matter was
produced when the
Universe formed

List of Particles

Standard Particles

This is a list of all the particles in the current standard model of particle physics and
two hypothetical particles that most physicists expect will be discovered: graviton
and Higgs. (See also the graphical Particles chart.)

All particles are either fermions or bosons.

Fermions. (half-integer spin 1/2, 3/2, 5/2, etc.) Matter is made of fermions.
Fermions obey the exclusion principle; they cannot be in the same place at the same
time.

Bosons. (integer spin 0, 1, 2, etc.) Forces are carried by bosons with non-zero spin.
Bosons do not obey the exclusion principle; they can pass right through each other.
Elementary particles. Elementary particles are not composed of other particles. The
elementary fermions are the quarks and leptons. The elementary bosons are the
photon, W and Z bosons, gluon, graviton, and Higgs.

Quarks. (spin 1/2) The protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom are made of
quarks. There are six types or "flavors" or quarks: down, up, strange, charm, bottom,
and top. Each comes in three "color" charges: red, green, and blue.

Leptons. (spin 1/2) The six leptons are the electron and its two heavier sisters, the
muon and tau, and the three lightweightneutrinos, the electron neutrino, muon
neutrino, and tau neutrino.

Graviton. (spin 2) Gravitons [predicted] carry the gravity force.

Gluon. (spin 1) Gluons carry the strong force, also called the nuclear force or color
force. The strong force holds quarks together.

W± and Z bosons. (spin 1) W± and Z bosons carry the weak force. The weak force is
responsible for radioactivity.

Photon. (spin 1) Photons carry the eletromagnetic force. Photons are particles of
light. Light is an electromagnetic wave.

Higgs. (spin 0) The Higgs boson [predicted] is an excitation the Higgs field. The
Higgs field gives other particles their inertial mass.

Electroweak W and B bosons. (spin 1) W1, W2, W3, and B bosons carry the
electroweak force. When the electroweak force split into the electromagnetic and
weak forces, the W1, W2, W3, B, and Higgs remixed to make W±, Z, photon, and Higgs.

Composite particles. Composite particles (hadrons) are composed of other particles.

The main types of composite particles are the baryons and the mesons.

Baryons. (spin 1/2, 3/2) Baryons are fermions composed of three quarks. The most
important baryons are the two nucleons: theproton (up-up-down quarks) and
the neutron (up-down-down quarks). Some other baryons are the sigma, lambda, xi,
delta, and omega-minus.

Mesons. (spin 0, 1) Mesons are bosons composed of a quark and antiquark. Some
mesons are the pion, kaon, eta, rho, omega, and phi.
Antiparticles. All particles have a corresponding anti-particle that is identical in
many ways but opposite in others; for example, the mass and spin are the same but
the charge is opposite. An uncharged particle may be its own anti-particle.

Chirality. Particles may have left-handed or right-handed spins.

Hypothetical Particles

There are many new theories, such as supersymmetry theory, supergravity theory,
and superstring theory, that postulate additional particles that are not in the
standard model of particle physics. Here are some:

Supersymmetric partners. Every standard particle may have a superpartner particle:

a fermion for each boson and a boson for each fermion.

Standard Fermions spin Partner Bosons spin

quark 1/2 squark 0

electron 1/2 selectron 0

neutrino 1/2 sneutrino 0

Standard Bosons spin Partner Fermions spin

graviton 2 gravitino 3/2

gluon 1 gluino 1/2

W±, Z 1 wino, zino 1/2

photon 1 photino 1/2

Higgs 0 Higgsino 1/2

Other particle names used in supersymmetry:

sparticle: the supersymmetric partner of any particle.

slepton: the partner of a lepton (electron or neutrino).
gaugino: the partner of a gauge boson (photon, W, Z, or gluon).
electroweak wino and bino: the partners of electroweak bosons (W and B).
neutralino: a mixture of neutral particles (photino, zino, and Higgsino, or electroweak
wino, bino, and Higgsino).
chargino: a mixture of charged particles (wino and Higgsino).

Strings. String theory postulates that all elementary particles are really tiny strings
with different vibration modes.

Sterile neutrino. A particle that has no interactions except gravity.

Graviton variations. The spin 1 graviphoton and the spin 0 graviscalar (also known as
the radion or dilaton).

Axion. A particle proposed to expain the the absence of an electrical dipole moment
for the neutron. Supersymmetry adds the axino and saxion.

Goldstone boson. A type of spin 0 particle that that is necessary wherever there is a
broken symmetry. Supersymmetry adds the goldstino and sgoldstino. The majoron is
a type of Goldstone boson.

X and Y bosons. Particles mediating a grand unified force, analogous to the W and Z
bosons.

Mirror particles. Particles with left/right (parity) opposite of known particles.

Magnetic monopoles. North and south monopoles, analogous to positive and negative
charged particles. Some theories also propose a magnetic photon.

Tachyon. A particle that travels faster than light and backward in time.

Exotic baryons. Fermions composed of three quarks plus other particles. The
pentaquark has five quarks.

Exotic mesons. Bosons composed of other particles, but not merely two quarks. The
tetraquark has four quarks. The glueball is composed of gluons.

Quasi-particles and other non-particles

Many quantized states are not real particles, but are conveniently named and treated
as if they were real particles. Some are the quantized modes of collections of
particles.
Soliton. A stable solitary wave packet arising from a combination of waves. Solitons
are found in many physical phenomena, large and small.

Phonon. A quantized sound wave.

Electron hole. The absence of a negatively-charged electron in a semiconductor,

treated as if it were a positively-charged particle.

Cooper pair. A pair of electrons (fermions) in a superconductor, treated like a single

boson.

Exciton. A bound state of an electron and an electron hole.

Magnon. A quantized spin wave.

Plasmon. A quantized plasma oscillation.

Polaron. A quantized polarization field.

Landau quasiparticle. In a normal metal.

Stoner excitation. In a ferromagnetic metal.

Bogoliubov quasiparticle. In a superconductor.

Particles chart (PDF) | elements.wlonk.com

Keith Enevoldsen