CDF

Two experiments measuring the W boson have two different results. The lead analyzer of the CDF experiment discusses the differing results and what’s next for the W boson measurements.

This year there were many major advances in our understanding of the Universe, including in the areas of particle physics and astrophysics. Included in this line-up are stories from DESI, LHC, The James Webb Space Telescope and more.

The CDF experiment at Fermilab measured the mass of the W boson and came up with an answer that no one expected.

From Popular Mechanics, April 9, 2022: New research shows the W boson is heavier than scientists expected with the discovery going against the Standard Model of particle physics. Recently, a 400-person team announced the results of data they carefully sifted through of more than four million collisions from the Collider Detector at Fermilab.

From AZO Quantum, April 11, 2022: The W boson, one of nature’s force-carrying particles, has been detected by the Collider Detector at Fermilab (CDF) team, which includes 400 scientists from across the world.

From the BBC, April 7, 2022: Scientists of the CDF collaboration have found a tiny difference in the mass of the W Boson compared with what the theory says it should be – just 0.1%. If confirmed by other experiments, the implications could be enormous and could challenge the Standard Model of particle physics.

Scientists of the Collider Detector at Fermilab collaboration have achieved the most precise measurement to date of the mass of the W boson, one of nature’s force-carrying particles. The measured value shows tension with the value expected based on the Standard Model of particle physics.

Twenty-five years ago, scientists on the CDF and DZero particle physics experiments at Fermilab announced one of history’s biggest breakthroughs in particle physics: the discovery of the long-sought top quark. The collaborations on the two experiments jointly made the announcement on March 2, 1995, to much fanfare. We take a look back on this day in Fermilab history a quarter-century ago.

From Duke Today, July 17, 2019: Teams behind the 1995 discovery are recognized for first observations of tiny but hefty particle at the heart of matter.

For over two decades, Spanish institutions have been collaborating with Fermilab. From the Tevatron era to the lab’s current neutrino experiments, Spain has made important contributions.