In the first study of its kind at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the CMS collaboration has tested whether top quarks adhere to Einstein’s special theory of relativity. The research is published in the journal Physics Letters B.

Along with quantum mechanics, Einstein’s special theory of relativity serves as the basis of the Standard Model of particle physics. At its heart is a concept called Lorentz symmetry: experimental results are independent of the orientation or the speed of the experiment with which they are taken.

Special relativity has stood the test of time. However, some theories, including particular models of string theory, predict that, at very high energies, special relativity will no longer work and experimental observations will depend on the orientation of the experiment in space-time.