gluon

American  

[gloo-on] / ˈglu ɒn /

noun

Physics.

1. a massless particle with spin 1 that transmits the strong force between quarks, binding them together into baryons and mesons.

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gluon British  

/ ˈɡluːɒn /

noun

1. a hypothetical particle believed to be exchanged between quarks in order to bind them together to form particles

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gluon Scientific  

/ glo̅o̅′ŏn /

1. The subatomic particle that mediates the strong force. The exchange of gluons between two quarks changes the color of the quarks and results in the attractive force holding them together in hadrons. Gluons are bosons.

2. See Table at subatomic particle

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Etymology

Origin of gluon

First recorded in 1970–75; glue + -on ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gluon

Their work focuses on comparing entropy in the early quark gluon phase with the entropy of the particles eventually produced and measured.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 5, 2026

In QCD, though, the force carrier, the gluon, also carries a color charge and can interact through the strong force with itself and with quarks.

From Scientific American ● Feb. 22, 2023

All interact by exchanging other particles: The photon conveys the electromagnetic force, the gluon carries the strong force that binds quarks, and the massive W and Z bosons carry the weak force.

From Science Magazine ● Jun. 12, 2022

Figure 33.23 This Feynman diagram is the same interaction as shown in Figure 33.6, but it shows the quark and gluon details of the strong force interaction.

From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015

It is believed that this force is carried by another spin-1 particle, called the gluon, which interacts only with itself and with the quarks.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking