W and Z bosons weak-force boson particle. Thus, this interaction requires a Z boson. These bosons are among the heavyweights of the elementary particles. With masses of and , respectively, the W and Z bosons are almost 80 times as massive as the proton – heavier, even, than entire iron atoms. Their high masses limit the range of the weak interaction. By way of contrast, the photon is the force carrier of the electromagnetic force and has zero mass, consistent with the infinite range of electromagnetism; the hypothetical graviton is also expected to have zero mass. (Although gluons are also presumed to have zero
Ghost (physics) Ghost (physics) In the terminology of quantum field theory, a ghost, ghost field, or gauge ghost is an unphysical state in a gauge theory. Ghosts are necessary to keep gauge invariance in theories where the local fields exceed a number of physical degrees of freedom. Faddeev–Popov ghosts are extraneous fields which are introduced to maintain the consistency of the path integral formulation. They are named after Ludvig Faddeev and Victor Popov. Faddeev–Popov ghosts are sometimes referred to as "good ghosts". Goldstone bosons are sometimes referred to as ghosts. Mainly, when speaking about the vanishing bosons of the spontaneous symmetry breaking