Particle Physics

How does the universe work?

What does the world consist of at the smallest level? What are the most fundamental particles of matter? Natural scientists have been looking into these basic questions since antiquity. In the course of their search, they have encountered ever smaller building blocks – first atoms, then atomic nuclei consisting of protons and neutrons, and finally tiny particles called quarks. Today, particle physicists are investigating the fundamental mysteries of the universe: what holds the cosmos together, and how do particles acquire their mass in the first place?