kaon

noun

ka·​on ˈkā-ˌän How to pronounce kaon (audio)
: an unstable meson that occurs in both charged and neutral forms and is about 970 times more massive than an electron

Examples of kaon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The kaon, a special case of meson particle, is made of one quark and one antiquark. Caroline Delbert, Popular Mechanics, 6 Mar. 2020 This symmetry would be all well and good if physicists had not discovered in 1964 that the weak nuclear force doesn’t share it: Two-quark particles called neutral kaons decay in ways CP symmetry forbids. Quanta Magazine, 27 Nov. 2019 Alternatively, the hidden depths of neutron stars might be filled with kaons — also made with strange quarks — that collect into a single lump of matter sharing the same quantum state. Quanta Magazine, 30 Oct. 2017 An experiment in 1964 involving exotic particles called kaons violated charge-parity symmetry. Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, 13 Dec. 2017 The Xi decays into a particle called the lambda baryon and three lighter particles, the K- (or kaon) and two pions. Fox News, 11 July 2017 The most famous of these two-quark particles are kaons and pions. Adam Mann, WIRED, 17 June 2013

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'kaon.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary ka kay (from K-meson, its earlier name) + -on entry 2

First Known Use

1958, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of kaon was in 1958

Dictionary Entries Near kaon

Cite this Entry

“Kaon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kaon. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.

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