In nuclear chemistry elements beyond Plutonium do not occur in nature and are synthesized artificially. Is it a similar case for Higgs boson too?

If so, how does it give mass to particles if it doesn’t exist? Did scientists create Higgs at LHC in 2011 just to make sure our universe exists through some kind of circular causation?

I’m obviously not understanding this properly. Please dispel my misunderstandings with reasonable explanations!

  • SzethFriendOfNimi@lemmy.world
    English
    30·
    8 months ago

    The way I understand it is that it’s a field just as photons are an excitation of the electromagnetic field.

    Except that the Higgs interacts with some particles giving them “mass” where they otherwise wouldn’t.

    So it “exists” in the sense that there is an all pervasive field that is interacting with other fields/particles.

    PBS space time is a great channel for things like this

    https://youtu.be/G0Q4UAiKacw

    And here’s an easier intro to the topic

    https://youtu.be/kixAljyfdqU

      • SzethFriendOfNimi@lemmy.world
        English
        3·
        8 months ago

        Definitely. There’s always whole swathes of nuance and you have to do that. Even so I still find some of it hard to follow.

        Similar to viascience. Great introductory material that gets harder and harder the deeper you go.

        Which, to me, just speaks of the incredible depth of knowledge we have and astounds me that we figured out as much as we have as it gets less and less intuitive.