What is a Quark?

[sarajo]

For a long time, scientists thought the atom was the smallest form of matter. Then subatomic particles like the proton and neutron were discovered, and suddenly we realized that there’s a lot more going on past the microscopic level than we had realized. The discoveries didn’t stop after the proton either, as now we’re looking at quarks and their varying “flavors.” Here’s a look at what quarks are why they matter.

Photo: Machinery used for inelastic x-ray scattering

1. Quarks were discovered in 1968.
Their existence had been suggested four years earlier, but it wasn’t until 1968 that we had solid evidence of them. They were discovered through a process called deep inelastic scattering, which basically consists of smashing electrons against protons and watching the patterns that occur as they bounce off. The patterns suggested that the electrons were encountering point-like particles within the protons. These point-like particles were quarks.

2. They come in flavors. Kind of like ice cream.
No, to this point we don’t know what quarks taste like. Flavors are what scientists call different types of the same particle, and quarks come in six flavors. These flavors are up, down, strange, charm, top, and bottom. Each flavor displays different characteristics and even has a different mass. Wacky, isn’t it?

3. What do quarks do?
Quarks are important because they form the building blocks of protons and neutrons, which help form atoms, which make up everything around us. Quarks hold the secret to some of our questions in physics, and by learning more about them and their role in the creation of, well, everything, we’ll begin to understand just a little bit more about the amazing universe we live in.

Ok I see

 

[knowledge]

WOW, I would like to see a quark, must be incredible.

 

[sarajo]

what is a quark

 

[Carol Cleon]

If a quark goes down it releases an electric charge, and if a quark goes up it absorbs a photon (gains charge?). I have to really study to get the pattern and order of quarks’ movements. It’s a real brain strainer for me.

 

[sarajo]

Oh I see - Unfortunately That was never mentioned in any science classes I took .Ive learnt something . If a question on University challenge comes up what is a quark -I'll know the answer

 

[Carol Cleon]

Oh I see - Unfortunately That was never mentioned in any science classes I took .Ive learnt something . If a question on University challenge comes up what is a quark -I'll know the answer

 

[Carol Cleon]

I’m looking at this course I took. I’ll cite it below. It says down quarts make energy. The quark family consists of three generations of 2 quarks each. The first member of each generation has a charge of +2/3. The second member has a charge of -1/3. Each quark has an antimatter twin with the opposite charges, yielding a total of 12 quarks. Under current conditions, quarks are never seen alone. They are always bound together in pairs (called mesons) or triplets (called baryons). The two most common of which are protons and neutrons. The Physics of History, Great Courses.

 

[wadedanielsmith]

For a long time, scientists thought the atom was the smallest form of matter. Then subatomic particles like the proton and neutron were discovered, and suddenly we realized that there’s a lot more going on past the microscopic level than we had realized. The discoveries didn’t stop after the proton either, as now we’re looking at quarks and their varying “flavors.” Here’s a look at what quarks are why they matter.

Photo: Machinery used for inelastic x-ray scattering

1. Quarks were discovered in 1968.
Their existence had been suggested four years earlier, but it wasn’t until 1968 that we had solid evidence of them. They were discovered through a process called deep inelastic scattering, which basically consists of smashing electrons against protons and watching the patterns that occur as they bounce off. The patterns suggested that the electrons were encountering point-like particles within the protons. These point-like particles were quarks.

2. They come in flavors. Kind of like ice cream.
No, to this point we don’t know what quarks taste like. Flavors are what scientists call different types of the same particle, and quarks come in six flavors. These flavors are up, down, strange, charm, top, and bottom. Each flavor displays different characteristics and even has a different mass. Wacky, isn’t it?

3. What do quarks do?
Quarks are important because they form the building blocks of protons and neutrons, which help form atoms, which make up everything around us. Quarks hold the secret to some of our questions in physics, and by learning more about them and their role in the creation of, well, everything, we’ll begin to understand just a little bit more about the amazing universe we live in.

The present version of the Quark Model needs some refinement. It currently predicts certain fundamental particles which verifiably do NOT exist in the real universe, such as Strangelets and Quark Stars. If Strangelets existed in the real universe, we wouldn't be here to observe them, because they are so destructive to Space-Time that discontinuities would exist everywhere, and even if they had only existed in the deep past, such as immediately after the Big Bang, there would be some evidence of their catastrophic existence remaining in the modern Universe.. So I tend to reject Strangelets. So because the model predicts Strangelets and a few other nonsense particles which absolutely do not exist in the real Universe, the model should only be used VERY CAREFULLY with experimental validation, until a better Quark model can be formulated which never makes "junk predictions".

Groethe's Law of Attraction is logically sound and is NOT the problem. It works for 3 of the 4 "known" fundamental forces, but does not appear to work for Gravity, Dark Energy, Dark Matter, nor Dark Flow...

Don't worry, Relativity and Quantum Theory in general sometimes make "Junk predictions" such as vertical assymptotes which absolutely do not exist in nature too. We don't discard those theories (yet) either, because we haven't figured out how to formulate a better version of the theory that doesn't make junk predictions. Even the best present version of String Theory still has one vertical assymptote in it, so we would like a universal theory of cosmology and physics which avoids vertical assymptotes and other junk predictions. There are no known vertical assymptotes in nature, not even at the event horizon of a black hole...nor the Big Bang itself.

 

[Carol Cleon]

I just read your most recent post, and I’m sorry you feel that way. I didn’t catch any proselytizing in your article, but I do know that’s against the rules. I believe in God, too, and have my beliefs, but we just can’t mention it on their site. Maybe private message only. But I just want to tell you I sure did enjoy your article on quarks. It got me looking up stuff and writing stuff down. Thanks brother.

 

[Zoey]

I find this a very interesting area, but some things can be difficult to grapple with. My nephew uses some undergrad physics textbooks which are not all easy to comprehend without a professor explaining things, but then he makes the effort to help me understand and I just enjoy it. He wants to get into academia and I think he will be a good fit. With college debt being what it is in these coronavirus times, I am afraid I will jinx his chances if I speak on!

 

[Hayseed]

After a bomb explosion, techs are send in to collect and re-assemble the bomb from the fragments.

Were those fragments used to construct the bomb?

That's a quark. It's just a dissolving charge fragment. Nothing can be learned from it......except that different power levels can make different sizes of fragments.

A fragment is NOT a component of construction.

It's a component of deconstruction only.

 

[Reeii Education]

what is a quark

A quark is a tiny particle which makes up protons and neutrons. Atoms are made of protons, neutrons and electrons. It was once thought that all three of those were fundamental particles, which cannot be broken up into anything smaller. After the invention of the particle accelerator, it was discovered that electrons are fundamental particles, but neutrons and protons are not. Neutrons and protons are made up of quarks, which are held together by gluons.

There are six types of quarks. The types are called flavours. The flavours are up, down, strange, charm, top, and bottom. Up, charm and top quarks have a charge of +2⁄3, while down, strange and bottom quarks have a charge of -1⁄3. Each quark has a matching antiquark. Antiquarks have a charge opposite to that of their quarks; meaning that up, charm and top antiquarks have a charge of -2⁄3 and that down, strange and bottom antiquarks have a charge of +1⁄3.

Only up and down quarks are found inside atoms of normal matter. Two up quarks and one down make a proton (2⁄3 + 2⁄3 - 1⁄3 = +1 charge) while two down quarks and one up make a neutron (2⁄3 - 1⁄3 - 1⁄3 = 0 charge). The other four flavours are not seen naturally on Earth, but they can be made in particle accelerators. Some of them may also exist inside of stars.

When two or more quarks are held together by the strong nuclear force, the particle formed is called a hadron. Quarks that make the quantum number of hadrons are named 'valence quarks'. The two families of hadrons are baryons (made of three valence quarks) and mesons (which are made from a quark and an antiquark).