Surprise! Protons Contain a Subatomic Particle That’s Heavier Than the Proton Itself

Protons are particles that exist in the nucleus of all atoms, with their number defining the elements themselves. Protons, however, are not fundamental particles. Rather, they are composite particles made up of smaller subatomic particles, namely two "up quarks" and one "down quark" bound together by force-carrying particles  (bosons ) called "gluons."

This structure isn't certain, however, and quantum physics suggests that along with these three quarks, other particles should be "popping" into and out of existence at all times, affecting the mass of the proton. This includes other quarks and even quark-antiquark pairs.

Indeed, the deeper scientists have probed the structure of the proton with high-energy particle collisions, the more complicated the situation has become. As a result, for around four decades, physicists have speculated that protons may host a heavier form of quark than up and down quarks called "intrinsic charm quarks," but confirmation of this has been elusive.

Now, by exploiting a high-precision determination of the quark-gluon content of the proton and by examining 35 years' worth of data, particle physics data researchers have discovered evidence that the proton does contain intrinsic charm quarks.

View in Browser  SHOP EXCLUSIVE SUBSCRIBE Surprise! Protons Contain a Subatomic Particle That's Heavier Than the Proton Itself Protons are particles that exist in the nucleus of all atoms, with their number defining the elements themselves. Protons, however, are not fundamental particles. Rather, they are composite particles made up of smaller subatomic particles, namely two "up quarks" and one "down quark" bound together by force-carrying particles  (bosons ) called "gluons." This structure isn't certain, however, and quantum physics suggests that along with these three quarks, other particles should be "popping" into and out of existence at all times, affecting the mass of the proton. This includes other quarks and even quark-antiquark pairs. Indeed, the deeper scientists have probed the structure of the proton with high-energy particle collisions, the more complicated the situation has become. As a result, for around four decades, physicists have speculated that protons may host a heavier form of quark than up and down quarks called "intrinsic charm quarks," but confirmation of this has been elusive. Now, by exploiting a high-precision determination of the quark-gluon content of the proton and by examining 35 years' worth of data, particle physics data researchers have discovered evidence that the proton does contain intrinsic charm quarks. Read More Lost for 105 Years at the Bottom of the Sea, Divers Have Finally Found the USS Jacob Jones USS Jacob Jones was the first American destroyer sunk in combat. It wouldn't be the last. Read More Ukraine Is Building Wooden HIMARS Decoys to Fool Russia—And It's Working The deception is working so well that Russia claims to have destroyed more HIMARS than the U.S. has even sent to Ukraine. Read More Ukraine Somehow Slapped U.S. Anti-Radar Missiles Onto MiG-29 Fighter Jets The AGM-88 HARM is designed to kill enemy air defense radars, but up until now, it wasn't compatible with Ukrainian aircraft. Read More Poland Is Gearing Up To Become a Tank Superpower By the 2030s, Poland will have more tanks than the U.K., Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Italy combined. Read More 5 Simple Tricks to Reduce Your Risk of Depression, According to a Neuroscientist Plus, what physically happens in your brain when you suffer from clinical depression. Read More Follow Us Unsubscribe | Privacy Notice/Notice at Collection PopularMechanics.com ©2022 Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Hearst Magazines, 300 West 57th Street, New York, NY 10019