quantum chromodynamics

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noun Physics.

a quantum field theory that describes quarks and gluons and their interactions, with the color of the quarks playing a role analogous to that of electric charge. Abbreviation: QCD

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Also called chromodynamics .

Compare color (def. 18).

Origin of quantum chromodynamics

First recorded in 1975–80

Words nearby quantum chromodynamics

quantong, Quantrill, quantum, quantum bit, quantum chemistry, quantum chromodynamics, quantum computer, quantum cryptography, quantum efficiency, quantum electrodynamics, quantum electronics

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

British Dictionary definitions for quantum chromodynamics

quantum chromodynamics

noun

physics a theory describing the strong interaction in terms of quarks and gluons, with the colour of quarks used as an analogue of charge and the gluon as an analogue of the photonAbbreviation: QCD

Word Origin for quantum chromodynamics

C20: chromodynamics from chromo- (referring to quark colour) + dynamics, modelled on quantum electrodynamics

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for quantum chromodynamics

quantum chromodynamics

A quantum field theory of the strong force that explains the interaction between particles with color charge, such as quarks and gluons. In quantum chromodynamics, particles interact through the strong force by exchanging gluons, which are the carriers of the strong force (much as photons are the carriers of the electromagnetic force in quantum electrodynamics). The theory is particularly important in theories of the atomic nucleus, whose nucleons are composed of quarks.