definitions

strange quark

noun Physics.

a quark having electric charge −1/3 times the elementary charge and strangeness −1; it is more massive than the up and down quarks.

RELATED CONTENT

12 Strange Names For Baby AnimalsLeverets, poliwogs, and spats: how well do you know your baby animal names?
READ MORE
12 Strange Names For Baby AnimalsLeverets, poliwogs, and spats: how well do you know your baby animal names?
READ MORE

Nearby words

strange attractor, strange bedfellows, strange interlude, strange matter, strange particle, strange quark, strange star, strange to say, strangeness, stranger, stranger rape

Origin of strange quark

First recorded in 1970–75
Also called s quark.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Science definitions for strange quark

strange quark

A quark with an electric charge of -1/3 and a mass of 391 electron masses, greater than that of the up quark and down quark, but smaller than that of other quarks. The presence of a strange quark contributes strangeness of -1 to the physical system containing it, while a strange antiquark contributes strangeness of +1. See Table at subatomic particle.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.