Fundamentals
There are several fundamental particles that influence four fundamental forces that make up the Standard Model of particle physics.
Fundamental Particles
Fundamental particles are the building blocks of matter and they can be divided into two categories: fermions and bosons.
Fermions are particles that make up matter. They are distinguished from bosons because they have half-integer spin and therefore obey the Pauli exclusion principal, which states that no two fermions can occupy the same quantum state simultaneously. Fermions can be further divided into two categories: quarks and leptons.
Quarks: Quarks have fractional electric charges and combine to form composite particles such as protons and neutrons, the building blocks of atomic nuclei. Quarks come in six different types, or flavors: up, down, charm, strange, top, and bottom. They also have a property called "color charge," which comes in three types: red, green, and blue. Quarks are never found in isolation in nature; they always exist in composite particles known as hadrons, which include protons and neutrons. Protons are composed of two up quarks and one down quark, while neutrons are composed of one up quark and two down quarks. Quarks also have fractional electric charges, with the up quark having a charge of +2/3 and the down quark having a charge of -1/3.
Two types of charge
Three colors
Six types of quarks: up, down, charm, strange, top, and bottom
Leptons: Leptons are particles that do not interact via the strong force. They have integer electric charges and include particles such as electrons and neutrinos. They come in six different types: electrons, muons, taus, and their corresponding neutrinos. Leptons do not have a color charge and do not combine to form composite particles. Electrons are the most well-known leptons and are found in atoms, while neutrinos are extremely light and are difficult to detect.
Six types of leptons: electron, muon, tau, electron neutrino, muon neutrino, and tau neutrino
Bosons are particles that mediate interactions between particles and include the photon, the W and Z bosons, and the Higgs boson. They DO NOT not obey the Pauli exclusion principle. Bosons are particles that have integer spin and are not subject to the Pauli exclusion principle. Bosons play a key role in mediating interactions between particles in the Standard Model. There are two styles of boson, gauge and scalar.
Four types of gauge bosons: photon, W boson, Z boson, and gluon
photon - Electromagnetic Interaction
W boson - Weak Interaction
Z boson - Weak Interaction
gluon - Strong Interaction
One scalar boson:
Higgs boson
Fundamental Forces
Electromagnetic Interaction: The electromagnetic force is responsible for interactions between electrically charged particles. It is mediated by the exchange of photons, which are massless particles. The electromagnetic force holds atoms and molecules together, and it is responsible for many everyday phenomena, such as light, electricity, and magnetism. Photons are the particles that mediate the electromagnetic force.
Weak Interaction: The weak force is responsible for radioactive decay and neutrino interactions. It is mediated by the exchange of W and Z bosons, which are very massive particles. The weak force is the only fundamental force that violates parity symmetry, meaning that the weak interaction can behave differently under a mirror reflection. W and Z bosons are the particles that mediate the weak force.
Strong Interaction: The strong force is responsible for holding atomic nuclei together. It is mediated by the exchange of gluons, which are massless particles. The strong force is the strongest of the fundamental forces, but it has a very short range and only acts within the atomic nucleus.
Gravity*: Gravity is the force that causes masses to attract each other. It is the weakest of the four fundamental forces but acts over very long distances. Gravity is mediated by the hypothetical particle called graviton, which has not been directly observed yet. Gravitons are hypothetical particles that are thought to mediate the force of gravity.