Results from CERN Support Standard Model

(CERN, July 19, 2013)

Researchers at CERN's Large Hadron collider have reported the first definitive observation of one of the rarest processes in fundamental physics: The decay of a particle called a Bs meson into two muons. The new measurements show that only a handful of Bs particles per billion decay into pairs of muons. Because this process is so rare, it is an extremely sensitive test for the Standard model, the very successful theory in particle physic. Any divergence from the Standard Model's prediction would be a clear sign of something new. The results offer strong support for the Standard Model: “This is a process that particle physicists have been trying to find for 25 years,” says CERN spokesperson Joe Incandela.