Physicists detect signals from the 'zeptoverse', smallest scale yet probed
scienceNov 3, 20261620
A Cambridge-led team using the Large Hadron Collider at CERN has detected particle interactions at the zeptometre scale, about 100 billion times smaller than an atom. The signal comes from rare decays of beauty quarks produced in high-energy collisions; those quarks live for roughly one and a half trillionths of a second yet were seen interacting at distances of a billion-trillionth of a metre. Researchers say this “zeptoverse” could be more sensitive to influences from dark matter, so studying these decays offers a new route to hunt for unknown particles. Harry Cliff of Cambridge, who led the data analysis, said the result gives scientists a ringside seat to possible new particles and that they need more data to explore further. The 28 countries in the LHCb collaboration have agreed a £150 million upgrade to the detector that would increase the decay-sampling rate tenfold. UK Research and Innovation recently withdrew its share of funding, putting the UK’s full participation and benefits for early-career researchers at risk, Professor Tim Gershon warned; team member Dr Mary Richardson-Slipper said she is reconsidering staying in the UK because of fewer opportunities.
