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Definition

The top quark is the heaviest of all observed elementary particles. It plays a vital role in particle physics and helps in understanding the fundamental forces.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. The top quark was discovered in 1995 at Fermilab.
2. It has a mass of approximately 173 GeV/c^2, making it much heavier than other quarks.
3. The top quark decays almost instantly into a W boson and a bottom quark (b-quark).
4. It does not form hadrons due to its extremely short lifetime.
5. The study of the top quark provides essential insights into the Standard Model and electroweak symmetry breaking.

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Related terms

Quark:

Fundamental particles that make up protons, neutrons, and other hadrons.

Standard Model:

A theory describing three of the four known fundamental forces in the universe (excluding gravity) and classifying all known elementary particles.

Hadrons:

Composite particles made up of quarks held together by strong interactions, such as protons and neutrons.