On the Method of the Theory of Elementary Particles

Abstract

To determine whether an object is an elementary particle or not, is one of the most interesting problems in the recent years. In some respects this has been a problem pending unsolved ever since the Hellenic age. From a theoretical point of view, to be an elementary particle means that the object in question can be represented by a quantized field. This definition, however, will lose its significance, when the mutual interaction between two such fields is very large. Fortunately or unfortunately, so strong an interaction has never been found to exist. Among the questions of the elementarities of the particle the .:nost serious one will be that asked about the nucleons. Th~n, what can be the experimental criterion to judge their elem'!ntarity? In this regard, we wish to advocate that the elementarity can be seen in the processes through which the substantial part of the rest mass is created from the enelgy which is not in the form of rest mass, as it is the case with the pair-creation, provided that there is no substantial effect of the very strong coupling. Let us consider a case where a composite particle composed of elementary particles is created through a process of pair-creation. If the binding energy forming this complex particle is small compared with its rest mass, its creation probability will be far sm:lller than the creation probability of the constituent elementary particles as separate individuals. If the nucleon is an elementary particle, there must be negative protons to ·be observed. If the nucleon is composed of smaller constit'-lents, there can he no negative protons. But if an extremely strong coupling exists, the situation