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The W and Z bosons are the force mediating particles of the weak nuclear force, which is responsible for some forms of radioactive decay. For example, in beta decay, a neutron is transformed into a proton, an electron and an electron antineutrino.
In the weak interaction, fermions can exchange one of three kinds of gauge bosons: W+, W- and Z bosons. The W+ or W- either have a positive or negative electric charge. They are also each other's antiparticle. The Z boson is electrically neutral and is its own antiparticle. The three particles all have a spin of 1. The W boson has a magnetic moment while the Z boson does not. All three of these particles are very short lived. They have a half-life of 3 x 10^-25 s.
The W bosons are named after the weak force. Stephen Weinberg is credited as having named the Z particle, since it is the last additional particle needed by the model. It also has zero electric charge.
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