Abstract
Elementary particle physics deals with the search and the study of the ultimate constituents of matter as well as of their interactions. Within common usage, the term elementary particle is considered to be a synonym of the ultimate constituent of matter. It is with such a conviction that the first scientists in this particular field of physics have attributed the name of elementary particle to objects that are not really as such: as the atom (which etymologically means indivisible in Greek) is in fact quite divisible, the largest part of elementary particles (the protons for instance) are also not truly elementary.
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© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
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Braibant, S., Giacomelli, G., Spurio, M. (2011). Historical Notes and Fundamental Concepts. In: Particles and Fundamental Interactions. Undergraduate Lecture Notes in Physics. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2464-8_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2464-8_1
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Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-007-2463-1
Online ISBN: 978-94-007-2464-8
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