The atomic nucleus contains protons and neutrons, each having 3 quarks. No consensus exists on nuclear structure from among the myriad models of the atomic nucleus, but model-independent deep inelastic scattering (DIS) experiments point increasingly to a role for quarks. Alternating Quark Model (AQM) structures comprise protons (udu) and neutrons (dud) that directly link by quark-quark interactions to maintain alternating quark (and alternating nucleon) sequences. Average alternating up/down quark positions assume simple geometries, such as a line or a polygon, and resulting radius predictions demonstrate 99% (±1) agreement and Pearson’s r = 0.99 (p<0.001) with accepted measurements of nuclear radii. Within the model, distance between linked quarks equals the radius of the proton. Larger structures contain Li-6 (18-quark) rings stacked in parallel so that protons and neutrons align between rings to form short-range proton-neutron (p-n) pairs. We show that structures violating an alternating quark sequence, or lacking p-n correlations between rings, are unstable or don’t exist. Electrostatic force calculations resulting from alternating quark charge sequences support an electromagnetic potential barrier (Coulomb barrier) between approaching nuclei. Similarly, opposing arrays of opposite/unequal N/ S permanent magnets yield a measurable electromagnetic potential barrier ( “Magnetic Potential Energy Barrier,” US Patent 16/827,652 ).  Furthermore, the linear local quark environment of the deuteron, as opposed to the ring structures of He-4 and larger nuclides, accounts for the European Muon Collaboration (EMC) Effect. Finally, we imagine a structure for quarks as linked harmonic oscillators, from which we derive a simple schema for beta decay. Quark structures offer an important tool in developing mechanisms of nuclear reactions.  (See also “The Structure and Stability of the Atomic Nucleus: The Alternating Quark Model,” https://youtu.be/gR9zIlIdNYQ for extended video.)

Nuclear structure, stability, and nucleon pairing are served by alternating up and down quark sequences

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

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