A new study published in the journal Physical Review Letters sheds light on a significant issue in particle physics related to the magnetic moment of the Muon. The magnetic moment is an inherent characteristic of a particle that arises from its interaction with a magnetic field.
For years, scientists have been puzzled by the discrepancy between the theoretical value of the Muon’s magnetic moment and the values obtained in high-energy experiments. This slight difference, apparent only at the eighth decimal place, may suggest interactions with dark matter, additional Higgs bosons, or unknown forces.
The most precise experimental value of the Muon’s magnetic moment was recently obtained at the National Accelerator Laboratory of Fermi in the USA and announced in August 2023. The results of the G-2 Muon experiment revealed a notable deviation from the theoretical value predicted by the Dirac equation, sparking considerable interest in understanding this divergence.
A study led by Dioga Boyto from the Institute of Physics at San Carlos University of San Paulo and his team unraveled the discrepancy between two methods for predicting the Muon’s magnetic moment. One method relies on data from electron-positron collisions, while the other employs quantum chromodynamics (QCD) simulations to study quark interactions.
Researchers devised a novel approach to compare the results of QCD simulations with experimental data, pinpointing the role of certain Feynman diagrams with remarkable precision. This breakthrough helped localize the source of the discrepancy and contemplate potential solutions.
Furthermore, recent data from the CMD-3 experiment at Novosibirsk State University suggests that previous data on the two-photon channel may have been underestimated. This finding not only has the potential to resolve a long-standing puzzle in elementary particle physics but also to enhance our comprehension of the fundamental forces governing the universe.