The standard model of particle physics refers to the prevailing theoretical framework that describes the fundamental particles and their interactions. It is a comprehensive theory that explains three of the four fundamental forces: electromagnetism, the weak nuclear force, and the strong nuclear force, encompassing particles and their behaviors.
According to the standard model, matter is composed of three generations of elementary particles: quarks and leptons, which are the building blocks of matter. Quarks come in six flavors: up, down, strange, charm, top, and bottom, while leptons include the electron, muon, tau, and their associated neutrinos. The interactions between these particles are mediated by force-carrying particles or gauge bosons: photons for electromagnetism, W and Z bosons for the weak force, and gluons for the strong force.
The standard model further postulates the existence of the Higgs boson, which is responsible for giving mass to fundamental particles. This theory provides a precisely quantified explanation of how these particles and forces interact, accounting for a vast range of experimental observations and measurements.
Although the standard model is highly successful and accurate, it leaves unanswered questions, such as the nature of dark matter, the unification of all forces, and the absence of certain observed phenomena. Thus, it is regarded as an effective but incomplete description of particle physics that ultimately requires extension and refinement.
