Advanced Particle Physics
Syllabus, Master's level, 1FA355
- Code
- 1FA355
- Education cycle
- Second cycle
- Main field(s) of study and in-depth level
- Physics A1F
- Grading system
- Fail (U), Pass (3), Pass with credit (4), Pass with distinction (5)
- Finalised by
- The Faculty Board of Science and Technology, 2 February 2022
- Responsible department
- Department of Physics and Astronomy
Entry requirements
120 credits with Particle Physics and Quantum Field Theory. Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6.
Learning outcomes
On completion of the course, the student should be able to:
- account for the Standard Model of particle physics and its experimental verification
- explain the limitations of the Standard Model and the need for going beyond it and how to search for new phenomena experimentally
- analyse particle physics processes based on the Standard Model and Feynman diagrams
- classify the major types of particle physics experiments, past and present, and their sub-detectors
- explain connections and complementarities with astrophysics and cosmology
Content
- Experimental and theoretical aspects of modern particle physics in terms of fundamental matter particles (quarks and leptons) and force quanta (photon, W±, Z0, gluons).
- The gauge theory of electroweak and strong interactions, i.e. the Standard Model.
- Use of Feynman diagrams to understand basic processes and calculate cross-sections (by hand or using computer methods).
- Experimental state-of-the-art techniques used in today's experiments.
- Experimental verification of the Standard Model and its particle content.
- Discoveries of new phenomena (e.g. CP violation and neutrino oscillations) and searches for new physics related to unsolved problems and limitations of the Standard Model.
- Introduction to Supersymmetry and other theories beyond the Standard Model.
- Prospects for discoveries of new phenomena, e.g. in LHC-experiments at CERN.
- Introduction to particle astrophysics with connections to cosmology.
Instruction
Lectures, exercises for problem solving, seminars.
Assessment
Seminars (3 credits), hand in exercises (7 credits).
If there are special reasons for doing so, an examiner may make an exception from the method of assessment indicated and allow a student to be assessed by another method. An example of special reasons might be a certificate regarding special pedagogical support from the disability coordinator of the university.