LHC Machine Challenges Leading Theory Of Physics

Physicists have uncovered a potential flaw in a theory that explains how the building blocks of the Universe behave.

The Standard Model (SM) is the best theory we have to explain the fine-scale workings of the world around us.

But we've known for some time that the SM is a stepping stone to a more complete understanding of the cosmos.

Hints of unexpected behaviour by a sub-atomic particle called the beauty quark could expose cracks in the foundations of this decades-old theory.

The findings emerged from data collected by researchers working at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). It's a giant machine built in a 27km-long circular tunnel underneath the French-Swiss border. It smashes together beams of proton particles to probe the limits of physics as we know it.