Measuring the fine-structure constant to refine Standard Model predictions

by Prof. Saida GUELLATI (Laboratoire Kastler Brossel)

Tuesday 4 May 2021, 11:00 → 12:00 Europe/Zurich

Video only (CERN)

The fine structure constant is this "magic and enigmatic" number close to 1/137 that appears in several areas of physics. This dimensionless constant characterizes the strength of the electromagnetic interaction between light and charged elementary particles, such as electron or muon. A precise knowledge of its numerical value is crucial to test, even with low-energy experiments, the calculations of quantum electrodynamics and some theoretical predictions of the Standard Model.

In this seminar, I will present our experiment that recently led to a new determination of the fine-structure constant with a relative uncertainty of $8.1 \times 10^{-11}$ and discuss the impact of this result on the tests of the Standard Model.

CERN_II.pdf

Recording

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