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Do all particles like pions, kaons, sigma, tau, whatever, all carry the elementary charge +-e ?
quasar987 said:Do all particles like pions, kaons, sigma, tau, whatever, all carry the elementary charge +-e ?
Really? Which? I only know of protons and neutrons.mathman said:Also there are baryons with charges of 2 or 3.
The elementary charge, denoted by "e", is the fundamental unit of electric charge found in all particles. It is the smallest amount of charge that can exist on its own and is used as a building block for larger charges.
All particles, including protons, neutrons, and electrons, carry an elementary charge of either +e or -e. This means that the charge of a single particle is either a positive or negative multiple of the elementary charge.
The existence of elementary charge was first discovered by physicist Robert Millikan in his famous oil drop experiment in 1909. He was able to measure the charge of an electron and found it to be a multiple of the elementary charge.
So far, all known particles have been found to carry an elementary charge. However, there are theories that suggest the existence of particles called quarks, which may carry a fraction of the elementary charge.
The elementary charge is an important concept in physics as it helps explain the nature of electric charge in matter. It also plays a crucial role in understanding the behavior of particles in electromagnetic fields and in the creation of electric currents.