News Particle Physics

Protons contain intrinsic charm quarks, a new study suggests

Understanding a proton’s charm could refine intel from particle colliders

an illustration of a proton, which looks like a bubble containing three shining dots, one orange (a down quark) and two blue (up quarks)

Protons are commonly thought to contain only three quarks — two up quarks and one down quark (illustrated). But there’s new evidence that protons may also contain intrinsic charm quarks and antiquarks.

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By Emily Conover

Protons may be intrinsically charming.

The subatomic particles are a mash-up of three lighter particles called quarks: two of the type known as up quarks and one down quark.