baryon number
Americannoun
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A quantum number equal to the number of baryons in a system of subatomic particles minus the number of antibaryons. Baryons have a baryon number of +1, while antibaryons have a baryon number of −1. Quarks and antiquarks have baryon numbers of + 1/3 and − 1/3, respectively (baryons consists of three quarks). Mesons, bosons, and leptons all have baryon numbers of 0. Although the baryon number has always remained unchanged in reactions observed in experiments, it is postulated that in interactions that take place under conditions of very high energies (as during the formation of the universe, for example), proton decay may take place, and baryon number conservation may be violated.
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See also isospin strangeness
Example Sentences
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"Our research challenges the long-held idea that baryon number is simply divided among and carried by the three quarks," said Ma.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
Instead, the gluon structure connecting those quarks could be central to how baryon number is carried through energetic collisions.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
"Using data collected from different types of particle collisions at RHIC, our results suggest that the baryon number is not simply carried by individual quarks," Xu added.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
The conservation of total baryon number is a more general rule than first noted in nuclear physics, where it was observed that the total number of nucleons was always conserved in nuclear reactions and decays.
From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015
A new physical quantity called baryon number B seems to always be conserved in nature and is listed for the various particles in the table given above.
From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015
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