Physicists shed light on unseen universal forces

The team from the University’s Particle Physics Theory Group used supercomputers - funded by a £530,109 grant from the Science and Technology Facilities Council - to predict the mass of a new particle known as the Bc* meson which is seen as a missing link in the quest to understand the force that dictates the behaviour of particles at the sub-atomic level.

If the team’s calculations are correct, the findings could dramatically alter how physicists view the nature of the universe.

By calculating the mass of the particle, scientists may be able to understand the strong force that holds quarks (elementary particles of matter) together and may shed light on the evidence of dark matter.

The four other forces at play in the universe are gravity, electromagnetism and ‘weak’, which is involved in some forms of particle decay.

Although the Bc* meson has never been seen before, the Glasgow Quantum Chromodynamics group, world leaders in sub-atomic science, said they are confident that the particle exists and of its effect in the universe.

Professor Christine Davies, who led the groundbreaking study, said: “Although this meson has not yet been shown to exist, our calculations have allowed us to predict not only its existence but also its mass. Two previous predictions we've made have been shown to be true so we are confident with this one.”

Prof Davies said the particle will have been created during collisions that take place at the CERN facility on the France-Switzerland border and in the Tevatron accelerator in Illinois, USA.

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