• Leptons?are a group of?fundamental?(elementary) particles
  • This means they are not made up of any other particles (no quarks)

   

• Leptons interact with other particles via the weak, gravitational or electromagnetic interactions
  • They?do?not?interact via the strong nuclear force

   

• The most common leptons are:
  • The electron, e–
  • The electron neutrino, ve
  • The muon, μ–
  • The muon neutrino, vμ

   

The most common leptons are the electron, muon and their respective neutrinos

• The muon is similar to the electron but is slightly?heavier
• Electrons and muons?both?have a charge of -1e?and a mass of 0.0005u
• Neutrinos are the most abundant leptons in the universe and have?no charge?and?negligible?mass (almost 0)
• Although quarks are fundamental particles too, they are not classed as leptons
  • Leptons do?not?interact with the strong force, whilst quarks do

   

• Similar to baryon number, the lepton number,?L?is the number of leptons in an interaction
• L?depends on whether the particle is a lepton, anti-lepton or neither
  • Leptons have a lepton number?L?= +1
  • Anti-leptons have a lepton number?L?= –1
  • Particles that are not leptons have a lepton number?L?= 0

   

• Lepton number is a quantum number and is conserved in all interactions
• This is helpful for knowing whether an interaction is able to happen

The lepton number depends if the particle is a lepton, anti-lepton or neither

Step 1:?Determine the lepton number of all the particles on both sides of the equation

0 + (–1) = 0 + X

Step 2: Identify the lepton number of X

If the lepton number must be conserved, X must also have a lepton number of –1

Step 3: State the particle X

Particle X is an anti-neutrino

• Muons are leptons that are slightly heavier than the electron
• Muons (μ–) typically decay into an electron
• Anti-muons (μ+) typically decay into positrons

The Feynman diagram for muon decay

• Muon decay occurs through the weak interaction
• This can be recognised by the exchange of the W–?boson on a?Feynman diagram

Step 1: Write out the equation for muon decay

μ–?→ e–?+ ?e?+ νμ

Step 2: List the quantities which must be conserved in this interaction

• • Charge, q
    • q = –1 for electrons and muons, q = 0 for neutrinos

     

  • Electron lepton number, Le
    • Le?= +1 for electrons, Le?= –1 for anti-electron neutrinos, Le?= 0 for muons and muon neutrinos

     

  • Muon lepton number, Lμ
    • Lμ?= +1 for muons and muon neutrinos, Lμ?= 0 for electrons and electron neutrinos

     

Step 3: Determine if each quantity balances on each side of the equation

• • Charge, q:
    • μ–?→ e–?+ ?e?+ νμ
    • –1 = –1 + 0 + 0?? conserved

     

  • Electron lepton number, Le:
    • μ–?→ e–?+ ?e?+ νμ
    • 0 = +1 – 1 + 0?? conserved

     

  • Muon lepton number, Lμ:
    • μ–?→ e–?+ ?e?+ νμ
    • +1 = 0 + 0 + 1???conserved

     

Step 4: Write a conclusion

• • The numbers on each side of the equation are equal for charge, electron lepton number and muon lepton number, therefore, muon decay satisfies these conservation laws