Proton Spin Puzzle (IMAGE)

DOE/Brookhaven National Laboratory

Proton Spin Puzzle

Caption

The proton spin puzzle: Scientists want to know how different constituents of the proton contribute to its spin, a fundamental property that plays a role in how these building blocks give rise to nearly all visible matter in the universe. Pieces of the puzzle include the orbital angular momentum of quarks and gluons (top left), gluon spin (top right) and quark and antiquark spin (bottom). The latest data from RHIC reveal that the antiquarks' contribution is more complex than previously thought.

Credit

Brookhaven National Laboratory

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