At the European Organization for Nuclear Research - CERN in Switzerland, the most powerful particle accelerator in the world will soon begin to provide scientists with much more data than ever before.
As the Large Hadron Collider returns to full operation, scientists at Fermilab - America's premier particle physics laboratory - are excited about a discovery in Switzerland - a bump that could be a new particle.
It cannot be seen with the naked eye, but it could still change the understanding of the known world of physics.
Fermilab scientist Don Lincoln says that in particle physics, a "bump" is when you have a smooth data curve - which is expected - and then you see an excess, a bump in the middle of the curve, which, he points out, is often an indication that they've reached something discoveries, N1 reported.
Lincoln is one of hundreds of scientists at Femilab, in suburban Chicago, who analyze data produced by the Large Hadron Collider at Cern.
"Since around 1964, we have developed a series of theories collectively called the Standard Model, and based on it we can explain all the data we have collected. However, we cannot explain that bulge," he says.
This means that the "bulge" could represent a new particle unknown to scientists. "If the shift in the curve is real, it's probably the biggest discovery in half a century," Lincoln said.
Fermilab is home to the Tevatron accelerator - once the world's fastest super-conducting super-particle collider. Although it is now decommissioned, having been overshadowed by CERN's LHC, Fermilab is still an important player in scientific research.
"We bring a certain level of technology and knowledge to their machine because we started with a superconductor machine and have hands-on knowledge," Fermilab director Nigel Lockyer points out.
Lokajer says that particle physics is more of a global endeavor today.
"We are entering a new era of relations between CERN and Fermilab, that is, Europe and the USA, when our particle physics programs are intertwined."
Thanks to technological advances and global cooperation, scientists at Fermilab can remotely monitor and analyze the data generated by the collisions of particles in the Hadron Collider, some 7.000 kilometers away.
There are two explanations for the latest potential discovery, says Don Lincoln.
"One thing is that it is just a random statistical fluctuation and it will disappear when more data comes in and we have to emphasize that.
However, the far more exciting possibility - if the 'bump' in the curve is real, then it is a completely fascinating creation that will redefine our understanding of the world.”
The Large Hadron Collider begins six months of proton collisions, and scientists hope that the data will provide an answer to the question of whether the "bump" is a new particle, or just a bump on the way to a better understanding of the standard model of physics.
Bonus video:
