Proton

< 1 >

A proton is a subatomic particle that consists of three quarks.

Protons are baryons. They consist of two up quarks and a down quark. These quarks are held together by gluons, the bearers of the strong nuclear force.

F E R M I O N S

H A D R O N S

B a r y o n s

P r o t o n s

p
proton p̅
antiproton

The elementary charge e is the electric charge of a single proton, or equivalently, the opposite of the electric charge of a single electron.

One gram of hydrogen gas contains about 10²⁴ protons, that is 3 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 quarks.

The proton was discovered in 1919 by the British-New-Zealnd physicist Ernest Rutherford.