Abstract: The Standard Model of particle physics provides a unified theoretical description of electromagnetic and weak interactions. I will describe some of the prominent features of the standard model, outline their historical development, and present some of the extensive experimental data that supports this theory. The Higgs boson plays the key role in the standard model of electroweak interactions. Following the discovery of this long-anticipated particle at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN in 2012, experimental measurements of the Higgs properties have started to open a new window on testing the standard model. I will discuss some of the theoretical reasons why these tests are particularly important for understanding the physics of electroweak interactions, and potentially uncovering new phenomena beyond the standard model. I will also discuss how the measurements of Higgs properties can lead to better understanding of the nature of the cosmological electroweak phase transition, which occurred about a nanosecond after the Big Bang, and possibly shed light on the origin of the matter-antimatter asymmetry in the universe.
Bio: Maxim Perelstein has received his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from Stanford in 2000. Following a postdoctoral appointment at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, he joined the faculty at Cornell in 2003, where he is currently a Professor of Physics. His research interests include theories of electroweak symmetry breaking, collider physics, microscopic theories of dark matter, and cosmological and astrophysical probes of particle physics beyond the standard model. His work has been recognized by a CAREER award from the National Science Foundation and a Simons Foundation Fellowship in Theoretical Physics.