QCD

Type: Concept

As of November 2026, QCD has been mentioned in 4 episodes across 2 podcasts, first heard Nov 2025 on CERN. Central theme of the episode, discussing the connection between real-world QCD and its underlying field theory description.

In theoretical physics, quantum chromodynamics (QCD) is the study of the strong interaction between quarks mediated by gluons. Quarks are fundamental particles that make up composite hadrons such as the proton, neutron and pion. QCD is a type of quantum field theory called a non-abelian gauge theory, with symmetry group SU(3). The QCD analog of electric charge is a property called color. Gluons are the force carriers of the theory, just as photons are for the electromagnetic force in quantum ele