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Researchers led by Prof. Stefan Sint from Trinity College have achieved the most precise measurement of the strong coupling constant, which determines how quarks and gluons interact to form nuclear matter. This international collaboration reduced the measurement uncertainty by half compared to all previous experimental results combined. The finding provides a more accurate parameter for the Standard Model of particle physics.
Why it matters
A more precise strong coupling constant allows physicists to make better predictions about nuclear interactions and test the Standard Model with greater accuracy. This fundamental measurement could reveal potential discrepancies that might point to new physics beyond our current understanding of matter.
Trinity’s Prof. Stefan Sint, along with collaborators from Germany, Spain and Italy, has published the most precise determination to date of the strong coupling constant. This parameter governs the interactions between quarks and gluons, the fundamental components of nuclear matter. The new result halves the error of all previous experimental measurements combined, setting a new benchmark for the Standard Model, which summarizes our current knowledge of elementary particle physics.
Source: Most precise measurement of the force that binds nuclear matter achieved