supersymmetry

noun

Etymology: From super- + symmetry. In the modern physics sense, coined by Pakistani physicist Abdus Salam and American physicist John Strathdee in 1974 as super-symmetry, in a paper in Physics Letters B as a simplification of super-gauge symmetry used by Julius Wess and Bruno Zumino.

1. A theory that attempts to unify the fundamental physical forces and which proposes a physical symmetry between bosons and fermions.

   “We suggest therefore that the expression "super-symmetry" might be more appropriate for the global concept and reserve the word "gauge" for local symmetries.”

   “Supersymmetry is the concept that known particles – such as electrons, quarks and photons – have a heavier and as-yet-undetected "superpartner".”