How AI is Reshaping Our Understanding of Proton Structure and Strange Quarks
AI Reshaping Atomic Model: For over a century, atomic models have shaped our understanding of matter. From the early idea that atoms were the smallest indivisible units to the discovery of subatomic particles like protons, neutrons, and electrons, science has continually refined the way we view the building blocks of the universe. Recent advances using artificial intelligence (AI), however, are shaking up the very foundations of what we thought we knew about protons the positively charged particles in atomic nuclei.
From the Smallest Unit to the Nuclear Model
In the early 1900s, scientists believed that atoms were the smallest particles in existence. This view changed in 1911 when Ernest Rutherford conducted his famous gold foil experiment. By bombarding thin gold foil with positively charged alpha particles, Rutherford observed that while most of the particles passed straight through, a few bounced back. This indicated the presence of a dense, positively charged center: the nucleus.
Rutherford hypothesized that protons and neutrons resided in this nucleus, while electrons orbited it. While his model was groundbreaking, it had a shortcoming: according to classical physics, orbiting electrons would emit radiation, lose energy, and spiral into the nucleus, causing the atom to collapse.
Bohr’s Solution and Stability
In 1913, Niels Bohr, a student of Rutherford, modified the atomic model. Bohr proposed that electrons reside in fixed, stationary orbits where they radiate no energy. Radiation occurs only when electrons jump between these orbits. This explained atomic stability and was widely accepted for decades.
Scientists were convinced they had discovered the fundamental particles and their behavior until new experiments began to reveal more layers.
Discovery of New Particles Beyond the Proton and Electron
In 1936, American physicist Carl Anderson discovered a particle similar to the electron, but heavier. This led to the classification of many new subatomic particles in the following years, challenging the idea that protons, neutrons, and electrons were the ultimate building blocks.
In the 1960s, scientists Murray Gell-Mann and George Zweig proposed that all known particles, including protons, were composed of even smaller components called quarks. These elementary particles determine the quantum properties such as charge and spin of matter.
The Quark Model and the Role of Gluons
Experiments in the 1970s at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center confirmed that protons consist of three quarks two up quarks and one down quark held together by gluons, the carriers of the strong nuclear force.
However, there was an unexpected twist. In certain experiments, scientists discovered strange quarks in protons particles much heavier than up or down quarks and theoretically unlikely to exist in protons under normal conditions. This discovery suggested that the internal structure of the proton might be more complex than the three-quark model suggested.
Quantum physics challenges the rigid structure of the proton
Quantum physics introduced an entirely new perspective: the interior of the proton is not static. Instead, it is a dynamic sea of quarks and antiquarks, constantly interacting and annihilating each other. In this quantum soup, three top quarks define the proton’s properties, but countless others including strange quarks can temporarily appear and disappear.
Scientists classified quarks into six “flavors”: up, down, top, bottom, strange, and charm quarks. Up and down quarks are the lightest, while top quarks are the heaviest. The strange quark lies between these extremes. Because strange quarks are lighter than charm quarks, scientists prioritized detecting them in protons to understand whether they are an integral part of the proton’s composition or only appear under certain conditions.
Experiments at the Large Hadron Collider
To investigate this further, researchers turned to the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the world’s most powerful particle accelerator. They collided protons at extremely high speeds to break them apart and observe their contents.
The results confirmed the presence of strange quarks in some cases, but it was unclear whether these were intrinsic (naturally present in the proton) or extrinsic (created by the collision itself). Some researchers suggested that strange quarks could be formed when gluons split during interactions at high energies, while others suggested they could exist even at lower energies.
This uncertainty made it difficult to draw definitive conclusions using only traditional experimental methods.
The Groundbreaking Role of Artificial Intelligence
Because conventional experiments took years to yield results, physicists began exploring AI as a tool for particle physics research. Neural networks, a type of AI system, can process vast amounts of historical experimental data much faster than humans.
Researchers trained a neural network using 35 years of proton collision data. Each type of quark has a unique wavefunction; a mathematical description of its quantum state. By giving the AI the wavefunctions of up, down, and strange quarks, researchers were able to simulate numerous proton models and test them simultaneously, instead of just one at a time.
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The AI used a three-layer neural network:
Input layer — Receives particle data in pixelated form.
Hidden layer — Processes the data via interconnected “neurons,” each with weighted connections representing computational rules.
Output layer — Produces predictions about the internal structure of the proton.
Through a process called forward propagation, the AI determined the probability that strange quarks were present in protons.
The AI’s surprising conclusion
After analyzing decades of data, the AI concluded that strange quarks exist in protons. If this finding is further confirmed, it could rewrite parts of the Standard Model of particle physics the framework that describes fundamental particles and forces.
Theoretical physicist Tim Hobbs and his team are now working on gathering definitive experimental evidence, possibly using specialized electron-proton accelerators. This method mirrors the approach that confirmed the existence of the Higgs boson in 2012.
Implications for Physics and the Universe
The discovery of strange quarks in protons is not just a technical detail it could change our understanding of the most fundamental building blocks of matter. It could impact how we model nuclear interactions, explain certain astrophysical phenomena, and even refine our predictions about the stability of the universe.
It’s worth noting that famed physicist Stephen Hawking once warned that certain quantum field instabilities—such as those involving the Higgs field could theoretically lead to the destruction of the universe. While such scenarios remain speculative, each new discovery about the particle’s behavior brings us closer to understanding the true nature of reality.
Finally:
From Rutherford’s gold foil experiment to AI-driven particle analysis, our understanding of the proton has evolved dramatically. What was once considered a simple three-quark system is now seen as a dynamic, fluctuating environment that can also harbor heavier quarks like the strange quark.
AI Reshaping Atomic Model not only accelerates research but also opens up new possibilities for unraveling mysteries that once seemed inaccessible. As technology continues to develop, the boundaries of particle physics will continue to expand proving once again that no model in science is ever definitive.
