= Bottom quark
{title2=$b$}
{wiki}
The bottom quark $b$ is the third-generation down-type <quark>, with <electric charge> $-e/3$, <spin> $1/2$ and <baryon number> $1/3$. It is a <heavy quark>; its <weak interaction> decays make bottom-containing <hadrons> unstable. The charge assignment is listed alongside the other flavors in <Quark Model in the 2024 Review of Particle Physics>[Table 15.1]{ref}.
A bottom quark combined with a light <antiquark> forms the minimal valence content of a bottom <meson>. Measuring the decay products and displaced decay point of such a hadron helps identify bottom production in a particle detector. The observed particles are hadrons and their descendants, rather than an isolated bottom quark propagating freely through the detector.
Back to article page