- #1
Souvik
Why is the (mass)^2 term of the Higgs Boson negative in the Standard
Model Lagrangian to start with? I understand that along with the H^4
term, it gives rise to dynamical symmetry breaking, which explains a
bunch of stuff (and eventually gives us a physical mass term for the
Higgs). But I find such a negative mass^2 rather unnatural, as it
implies that if symmetry remains unbroken (at high enough
temperatures), the Higgs Boson is an on-shell tachyon!
How does one justify this leap of faith in introducing the -ve mass^2,
or does it have some higher energy explanation in string theory or
something?
Thanks,
Souvik
Model Lagrangian to start with? I understand that along with the H^4
term, it gives rise to dynamical symmetry breaking, which explains a
bunch of stuff (and eventually gives us a physical mass term for the
Higgs). But I find such a negative mass^2 rather unnatural, as it
implies that if symmetry remains unbroken (at high enough
temperatures), the Higgs Boson is an on-shell tachyon!
How does one justify this leap of faith in introducing the -ve mass^2,
or does it have some higher energy explanation in string theory or
something?
Thanks,
Souvik