- Eightfold way (physics)
In
physics , the Eightfold Way is a term coined by Americanphysicist Murray Gell-Mann for a theory organizing subatomicbaryons andmeson s into octets (alluding to theNoble Eightfold Path ofBuddhism ). The theory was independently proposed byIsraeli physicistYuval Ne'eman and led to the subsequent development of thequark model .In addition to organizing the mesons and spin-1/2 baryons into octets, the principles of the Eightfold Way also applied to the spin-3/2 baryons, forming a decuplet. However, one of the particles of this decuplet had never been previously observed. Gell-Mann called this particle the SubatomicParticle|link=yes|Omega- and predicted in
1962 that it would have astrangeness −3,electric charge −1 and a mass near val|1680|u=MeV/c2. In1964 a particle closely matching these predictions was discovered by a particle accelerator group at Brookhaven, making the Eightfold Way a triumphant success. Gell-Mann went on to receive the1969 Nobel Prize in physics for his work on the theory of elementary particles.The Eightfold Way may be understood in modern terms as a consequence of flavor symmetries between various kinds of
quark s. Since thestrong nuclear force is the same for quarks of any flavor, replacing one flavor of quark with another in a hadron should not alter its mass very much. Mathematically, this replacement may be described by elements of the group SU(3). The octets and other arrangements are representations of this group; for a more detailed explanation of this fact, see the articleParticle physics and representation theory .References
*cite book|last=Griffiths|first=David|year=1987|title=Introduction to Elementary Particles|location=New York|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|id=ISBN 0-471-60386-4
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
Look at other dictionaries:
Eightfold Way — Eight fold Way may refer to:* Noble Eightfold Path, Buddhist doctrine * Eightfold way (physics), particle physics theory * Eightfold Path (policy analysis) … Wikipedia
Eightfold Way — Physics. a scheme for classifying hadrons according to a symmetry principle based on strangeness and isotopic spin: a forerunner of the quark model. [1925 30; so named because hadrons with low mass and spin form groups of eight; with jocular… … Universalium
eightfold way — noun Etymology: from the Eightfold Way Eightfold Path; from the fact that the most common grouping contains eight interacting particles : a unified theoretical scheme for classifying the relationship among elementary particles subject to the… … Useful english dictionary
PHYSICS — The material presented in this entry emphasizes those contributions which were important in arriving at verified present day scientific results, rather than those that may have appeared important at the time. Unavoidably it will overlap in parts… … Encyclopedia of Judaism
History of physics — The modern discipline of physics emerged in the 17th century following in traditions of inquiry established by Galileo Galilei, René Descartes, Isaac Newton, and other natural philosophers.Fact|date=September 2008 Prior to this time, a unified… … Wikipedia
Particle physics and representation theory — There is a natural connection, first discovered by Eugene Wigner, between the properties of particles, the representation theory of Lie groups and Lie algebras, and the symmetries of the universe. According to it, the different states of an… … Wikipedia
Middle way — For the book by Harold Macmillan, see The Middle Way. For the Aristotelian notion of middle state , see Golden mean (philosophy). Part of a series on Buddhism Outline · Port … Wikipedia
List of baryons — This list is of all known and predicted baryons. See list of particles for a more detailed list of particles found in particle physics. Baryons, being composed of quarks, are part of the subatomic particle family called the hadrons. Baryons are… … Wikipedia
Octet — may refer to: Music Octet (music), ensemble consisting of eight instruments or voices, or composition written for such an ensemble Octet (Beethoven), 1793 composition by Ludwig van Beethoven Octet (Mendelssohn), 1825 composition by Felix… … Wikipedia
Down quark — Composition Elementary particle Statistics Fermionic Generation First Interactions Strong, Weak, Electromagnetic force, Gravity Symbol … Wikipedia