Can Future Colliders Break the Standard Model?
Summary
This episode explores the history of particle accelerators and evaluates the prospects of the Future Circular Collider (FCC), a proposed 100km ring that would operate at eight times the LHC's energy. The discussion addresses the current impasse in particle physics, noting that the LHC has failed to find supersymmetric particles despite decades of searching. The hosts compare the FCC to the US-based Electron-Ion Collider and debate the value of such massive investments in fundamental science, concluding with a quote from Robert Wilson on the patriotic merit of pursuing knowledge.
Topics discussed
Sponsor: Progressive Insurance
Sponsor: Workday and episode intro
The Future Circular Collider (FCC) vision
History of early particle accelerators
Invention of storage rings and first colliders
Tevatron and the Large Hadron Collider (LHC)
Sponsors: Progressive and Workday
Supersymmetry and the hierarchy problem
Why higher energies are needed for new physics
High-Luminosity LHC upgrades
FCC as a Higgs factory
Sponsors: Progressive and Workday
FCC proton collisions and cost analysis
US collider plans: Fermilab and EIC
The value of fundamental physics research
Patreon shoutouts and proton joke
Q&A: Merging black holes and event horizons
Q&A: Chandrasekhar limit and white dwarfs
Q&A: Sound in space and final sponsors
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