The Standard Model and Beyond

目前，我们对自然最基本的认识正处于十字路口。今年，欧洲核子研究中心（CERN）的大型强子对撞机（LHC）将以比以往更高的能量碰撞质子，足以在TeV尺度上深入探索物理学。没有人知道这些数据会揭示什么。然而，有很好的理由相信，一些根本性的新事物将被发现，这可能会改变我们对基础物理学的理解，使未来几年成为一代人或更多人最激动人心的时期。这些发现可能是新类型的粒子，如希格斯玻色子，新类型的对称性，如超对称，或者甚至是更引人注目的东西，如额外维度。我们在爱丁堡大学粒子物理理论的滚动研究项目旨在走在这些新发现的前沿：事实上，彼得·希格斯本人就是这里的名誉教授。具体来说，我们提供了理论计算，使用笔和纸，以及最强大的超级计算机，对已知物理在大型强子对撞机上看到的大量背景过程，以及各种新物理模型中预期的微小信号，以便区分信号和背景，从而最大限度地提高大型强子对撞机的发现潜力。与此同时，在我们对万物理论的终极追求中，我们将试图理解所有自然力量的更完整的图景，这些力量将开始出现。

Currently, our understanding of Nature at the most fundamental level is at the crossroads. This year, the LHC at CERN will collide protons at higher energies than ever before, sufficient to explore physics in depth at the TeV scale. Nobody yet knows what these data will reveal. However, there are very good reasons to believe that something fundamentally new will be discovered, which might transform our understanding of basic physics, making the next few years the most exciting time for a generation or more. The discoveries could be new types of particle, such as the Higgs boson, new kinds of symmetries such as supersymmetry, or indeed something even more dramatic such as extra dimensions. Our rolling programme of research in Particle Physics Theory at the University of Edinburgh is designed to be at the forefront of these new discoveries: indeed Peter Higgs himself is Emeritus Professor here. Specifically, we provide theoretical calculations, using pen and paper, and the most powerful supercomputers, of both the huge number of background processes to be seen at LHC due to known physics, and the tiny signals expected in various models of new physics, in order to discriminate between signal and background, and thus maximise the discovery potential of the LHC. In parallel, we will attempt to understand the more complete picture of all the forces of Nature that should begin to emerge, in our ultimate quest for a Theory of Everything.