charmonium

[ chahr-moh-nee-uhm ]

noun

, Physics.

1. any meson composed of a charmed quark and a charmed antiquark.

charmonium

/ tʃɑːˈməʊnɪəm /

noun

1. physics an elementary particle that contains an antiquark and a charm quark

Word History and Origins

Origin of charmonium¹

1970–75; charm ¹ + -onium, probably extracted from positronium

Word History and Origins

Origin of charmonium¹

C20: from charm (sense 7)

Example Sentences

The researchers concluded that that was the mass of a fleeting "charmonium" pentaquark containing two up quarks, one down quark, one charm quark, and one anticharm quark.

From Science Magazine

The particle contains two ‘up’ quarks, a ‘down’ quark, and a ‘charm’ quark-antiquark pair, making it a ‘charmonium’ pentaquark. 

From Nature

This has a mass that places it in a dense forest of charmonium states – particles that are made up of a charm quark and a charm antiquark.

From Scientific American

Crucially though, the Z is electrically charged whereas all charmonium states must be neutral, clearly marking it out as something unusual.

From Scientific American