Squarks

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Hypothetical particles predicted by supersymmetry theory, each one a heavier partner paired with a quark type
2. Theoretical bosons proposed in particle physics as the supersymmetric counterparts of ordinary quarks
3. Speculative heavy particles that physicists suppose mirror quarks in a supersymmetric model of matter

Etymology: "Squark" is a physics coinage: it combines the prefix "s-", short for "scalar", with "quark", the name for the fundamental particles that make up protons and neutrons. "Squarks" is simply the plural form, so the term refers to the hypothetical particles that the scalar prefix attaches to. The "s-" marks a particle with spin zero, while quarks have spin one-half. The word belongs to supersymmetry, a theory proposing that every known particle has a heavier partner differing from it by half a unit of spin. In that scheme, each quark is paired with a squark, a scalar superpartner, and each lepton with a slepton. The naming follows the same pattern, so a reader who knows "quark" and "slepton" can decode the family at a glance.