Scientists Measure Shift Forces in Protons
Scientists from the laboratory named after Thomas Jefferson in the US have made an important breakthrough in the physics of the microworld. They have successfully measured the shift forces acting on quarks inside the proton. This discovery was made possible through experiments conducted several decades ago on the accelerator of charged particles Cebaf.
To study the internal structure of the proton, scientists utilized the method of deep-virtual Compton scattering. During the interaction between electrons and protons, one of the quarks inside the proton emits a photon. By analyzing the properties of this photon, scientists are able to gather information about the characteristics of the quark itself.
A key aspect of this breakthrough was the utilization of theoretical predictions made by physicist Maxim Polyakov in the early 2000s. Polyakov established a relationship between the gravitational properties of particles and their internal structure. Building on these insights, a team of researchers led by Volker Burkert was able to calculate the magnitude of the shift forces acting between the quarks inside the proton.
According to Burkert, these forces amount to 4 tons, which is the amount of force needed to extract a single quark from the proton. Previously, the same group of scientists had determined the magnitude of the pressure inside the proton.
This discovery fundamentally changes our understanding of the internal structure of the proton and paves the way for further research using the method of deep-virtual Compton scattering.
In the near future, scientists plan to conduct high-precision measurements of the size of the proton. According to another member of the group, Latifs of Eludriri, this discovery is just the beginning of something much larger. The analysis of electron scattering data will provide fundamentally new information about the properties of the proton and may even lead to the identification of previously