An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics
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A → scalar field supposed to be responsible for the genesis of → inertial mass. According to the → standard model of → particle physics, the Higgs field appeared 10^-36 to 10^-12 seconds after the → Big Bang, during the → electroweak epoch, when the temperature dropped below a critical threshold. The Higgs field permeates all space, and through its interaction with the fundamental particles it provides those particles with a mass. Any particle that does not interact with the Higgs field, such as the → photon, will be mass-less.

→ Higgs boson; → field.