Interaction of Particles and Fields

粒子物理学、宇宙学和数学的学科如今正以非凡的方式融合在一起。理论基本粒子物理学和弦理论的研究将研究世界是如何运作的，从可能位于最小粒子深处的弦到可见宇宙的边缘甚至更远。在此过程中开发的工具也可能影响数学的本质。要研究的领域包括宇宙的大尺度结构、时空的本质、自然界的基本力量和物质的最基本成分。从现象学和从弦理论中产生的强大的新技术来看，这项研究将研究物质的特性，比如在最大的加速器（Tevatron，以及未来十年的大型强子对撞机）上揭示的特性。这一努力应该可以解释粒子质量的起源。此外，这项工作将寻求对CP违反的潜在解释——物质和反物质行为之间的差异。这是一个微小的效应，不久将在斯坦福大学的BABAR对撞机上进一步研究，但它很可能解释为什么我们是由物质而不是反物质组成的。其他需要解决的挑战包括超对称物理学（一个引人注目的，但仍然是假设的弦理论预测），黑洞的量子力学，以及弦理论的物理和数学基础。这些研究将加深我们对宇宙中发生的基本过程的理解，并导致数学和量子场论的新见解。

The disciplines of particle physics, cosmology and mathematics are coming together today in remarkable ways. Research in theoretical elementary particle physics and string theory will examine how the world works, from the strings that may lie deep inside the smallest particles to the edge of the visible universe and beyond. The tools developed in doing this may influence the nature of mathematics as well. The areas to be studied include the large-scale structure of the universe, the nature of space- time, the fundamental forces of nature and the most basic constituents of matter. Both phenomenologically and with powerful new techniques arising from string theory, the research will study the properties of matter, such as revealed at the largest accelerators (the Tevatron, and in the next decade, the Large Hadron Collider). This endeavor should explain the origin of particle masses. In addition, the work will seek the underlying explanation of CP violation -- the difference between the behavior of matter and that of antimatter. This is a tiny effect soon to be explored further at the BABAR collider in Stanford, but it is likely to explain why we are made of matter, not antimatter. Other challenges to be addressed involve the physics of supersymmetry (a striking, but still hypothetical prediction of string theory), the quantum mechanics of black holes, and the physics and mathematics underlying string theory. These researches will deepen our understanding of the fundamental processes occurring in the universe and lead to new insights in mathematics and quantum field theory.