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Brief Introduction of Lepton

    In particle physics, a lepton is an elementary particle of half-integer “1/2” spin that does not undergo strong interactions.

    Image by Otodex from Pixabay

    Two main classes of leptons exist, charged leptons, and neutral leptons.

    charged

    electron

    muon

    tau

    neutral

    electron neutrino

    muon neutrino

    tau neutrino

    Charged leptons can combine with other particles to form various composite particles such as atoms and positronium, while neutrinos rarely interact with anything, and are consequently rarely observed.

    The first neutrino, the electron neutrino, was proposed by Wolfgang Pauli in 1930 to explain certain characteristics of beta decay.

    Leptons own various intrinsic properties, including electric charge, spin, and mass.

    The first charged lepton, the electron, was theorized in the mid-19th century by a lot scientists and was discovered in 1897 by J. J. Thomson.

    The best familiar of all leptons is the electron.

    Electrons own the least mass of all the charged leptons.

    Particle name Symbol Charge Q (e) Spin J Mass (MeV/c2) Lifetime (seconds)
    Electron − e −1 1⁄2 0.510998910 (±13) Stable
    Muon − μ −1 1⁄2 105.6583668 (±38) 2.197019×10−6 (±21)       
    Tau − τ −1 1⁄2 1776.84 (±.17) 2.906×10−13 (±.010)        
    Electron neutrino νe 0 1⁄2 <0.0000022 Unknown
    Muon neutrino νμ 0 1⁄2 < 0.17 Unknown
    Tau neutrino ντ 0 1⁄2 < 15.5 Unknown

    Muon, discovered by Carl D. Anderson in 1936, which was classified as a meson at the time.

    Source:

    [1] Wikipedia Contributors. “Lepton.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 18 Nov. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lepton. Accessed 18 Nov. 2020.

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