Can Protons be Divided ? 🤓
From our childhood we all have heard that Protons are the fundamental particles of matter and that they cannot be divided further. Is it true? Not after 1960s !!
First, let's take a glimpse in the history of Indivisibility of atoms -
Greek and Indian philosophers were the first to propose indivisibility. By 1800 it became clear that elements were the most fundamental constituents of matter and John Dalton in 1800 proposed that each element is made up of indivisible atoms. But in 1897, J.J. Thomson and his group discovered electron as a particle, which gave the theory that atoms can be divided.
Eventually they discovered protons and neutrons also, and for several decades they felt that electrons, protons, and neutrons cannot be split up further. This is what is taught to us in schools today.But this idea received a blow in the 1960s at Stanford linear accelerators made it clear that protons did contain small particles. These particles were eventually named "quarks".
Finally, the myth about protons were broken and today we know that protons can be divided. Originally they thought that there are going to be only 3 quarks(2 up quark and 1 down quark) but eventually they discovered 6 quarks that make up all the sub-atomic particles in the proton and the neutron family.
The biggest question today is whether even the 'quarks' can also be split in the same manner ??
But, for this we have to wait and keep our patience till our scientists come up with something extraordinary.
#thank_you 🤙 Hoping you liked
First, let's take a glimpse in the history of Indivisibility of atoms -
Greek and Indian philosophers were the first to propose indivisibility. By 1800 it became clear that elements were the most fundamental constituents of matter and John Dalton in 1800 proposed that each element is made up of indivisible atoms. But in 1897, J.J. Thomson and his group discovered electron as a particle, which gave the theory that atoms can be divided.
Eventually they discovered protons and neutrons also, and for several decades they felt that electrons, protons, and neutrons cannot be split up further. This is what is taught to us in schools today.But this idea received a blow in the 1960s at Stanford linear accelerators made it clear that protons did contain small particles. These particles were eventually named "quarks".
Finally, the myth about protons were broken and today we know that protons can be divided. Originally they thought that there are going to be only 3 quarks(2 up quark and 1 down quark) but eventually they discovered 6 quarks that make up all the sub-atomic particles in the proton and the neutron family.
The biggest question today is whether even the 'quarks' can also be split in the same manner ??
But, for this we have to wait and keep our patience till our scientists come up with something extraordinary.
#thank_you 🤙 Hoping you liked