The third difference is particularly interesting and involves the type of charge. God gave each force the right strength and range so that matter would be possible in all its wondrous forms. This is a phenomenally important design feature because if the strong force had the same infinite range as the electric force, then the former would overwhelm the latter and all the matter in the universe would collapse into a single nucleus. Second, the strong force has an extremely limited range. Furthermore, the two positively charged up quarks within a proton would repel each other and the proton would break apart. If this were not the case, then the positively charged protons would repel each other and atoms could not exist. Without these differences, matter could not exist and biological life would be impossible.įirst, as implied by the name, the strong force is much more powerful than the electric force at subatomic distances. The strong force is similar in some ways to the electric force, but it also has some differences. The strong nuclear force is able to overcome the mutual repulsion of protons, but the strong force is also what holds the quarks together within a given proton or neutron. 2 The fractional +2/3 charge of the up quark and the -1/3 charge of the down quark causes the proton and neutron to have a total charge of +1 and 0, respectively. In the previous article, we saw that protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom are each made of three quarks. To make sense of mesons, we need to explore how the strong nuclear force operates. But they provide us with great insight into how the laws of physics work and thus the organized and mathematical way that God upholds what He has created. A bit more mysterious than protons and electrons, mesons have a fleeting existence, lasting only a fraction of a microsecond. Protons and neutrons belong to a group of particles called baryons, which are hundreds of times more massive than electrons.īut a type of particle with mass between leptons and baryons also exists these are mesons. In earlier articles within this series, we have seen that electrons are part of a class of particle called leptons, which are elementary and tend to have very low mass. Indeed, we are made of them-electrons, protons, and neutrons comprise atoms, and atoms comprise our bodies. We have some experience with these particles because we were taught about them in school. When considering the term subatomic particles, many people typically think of things like electrons, protons, or neutrons.
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