Over the past century, quantum field theory has proved to be the single most sweeping and successful physical theory ever invented. It is an umbrella term that encompasses many specific quantum field theories — the way “shape” covers specific examples like the square and the circle. The most prominent of these theories is known as the Standard Model, and it is this framework of physics that has been so successful.
“It can explain at a fundamental level literally every single experiment that we’ve ever done,” said
David Tong, a physicist at the University of Cambridge.
