Particle physics

As a hadron, the neutron is involved in all four elementary forces of the Standard Model. These forces range from the largest scales in astronomy to the smallest dimensions in nuclear and particle physics. To distinguish between the different competing theories describing the origin of our universe, the underlying fundamental constants of these models must be determined as accurately as possible.

The most prominent examples in these fields of experiments with cold and ultra-cold neutrons are the decay and lifetime of the free neutron and the question of the electric dipole moment of the neutron itself.