Note: Natural quantum theory originally limits its scope of discussion to the low-energy range (<< electron self-energy, e.g., below tens of keV). Some extensions are made here with some questions remaining.
I. Introduction: The Loss of Physical Image in Quantum Chromodynamics
In Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD), the strong interaction is represented by an abstract color symmetry ( SU(3)_c ).
Quarks carry three “color charges,” and gluons mediate their interactions through gauge fields.
While mathematically consistent, this framework lacks any physical visualization:
What is a “color”?
What does confinement mean physically?
Why do quarks never appear free?
These questions are usually answered with metaphors rather than mechanisms.
In Natural Quantum Theory (NQT), by contrast, the strong interaction is interpreted as a self-organizing electromagnetic–magnetic coherence phenomenon within extended field structures, where “color” represents real phase–polarization modes of internal field vortices.
II. From Charge Coherence to Field Confinement
Electromagnetic interaction, in NQT, arises from phase coherence among oscillating charge distributions.
When multiple oscillatory fields overlap spatially, their relative phase and polarization coupling determine whether they attract, repel, or resonate.
At very small scales (comparable to or below the Compton wavelength of the particle), these oscillations are so intense that the electromagnetic field itself becomes self-confined—it can no longer radiate energy freely outward.
Instead, the field energy circulates internally, forming closed magnetic–electric vortices.
This is the physical origin of confinement:
not a “mysterious color force,” but the natural stabilization of self-rotating electromagnetic fields under extreme coherence constraints.
III. The Internal Rotational Structure of a “Quark”
In this picture, what we call a quark corresponds to a fundamental vortex mode of the electromagnetic field within a confined structure.
Each mode possesses:
A definite rotational orientation (right-hand or left-hand spin coupling);
A fractional electric phase shift—which manifests macroscopically as “fractional charge.”
Mathematically, these fractional phase couplings correspond to rotations of (2\pi/3) in the internal coherence space—hence the appearance of three distinct “color” modes.
Physically, they are three stable rotational eigenmodes of a single coherent electromagnetic vortex.
Thus:
[
\text{“Color”} ;\leftrightarrow; \text{Phase orientation of internal field rotation.}
]
The so-called SU(3) structure is not an abstract internal space, but a threefold rotational symmetry of the real electromagnetic–magnetic vortex system.
IV. The Strong Coupling as Coherent Magnetic Locking
When two or more such vortices coexist (e.g., within a proton or neutron), their magnetic circulation fields overlap.
Because each vortex carries both charge distribution and magnetic flux, they experience mutual locking forces that depend on their relative rotational phases.
If the circulation directions are complementary, the fields interlock stably—forming a bound hadronic structure.
If the circulation directions are incompatible, the fields repel—preventing the existence of free quarks.
This mechanism naturally reproduces the confinement property without invoking abstract gauge confinement:
the magnetic–electric field self-organizes into a minimum-energy configuration only when the composite structure maintains global phase coherence.
In this sense, “gluons” represent collective oscillation modes of the magnetic flux connecting the vortices—not independent particles, but field bridges maintaining phase continuity between quarks.
V. Why the Strong Force Is Strong
The apparent “strength” of the strong interaction arises from field compression.
When the coherence radius approaches the particle’s Compton scale (~10⁻¹⁵ m for nucleons), the field curvature and stored magnetic energy become enormous.
Unlike the long-range electromagnetic field, the closed flux configuration cannot release its energy radiatively.
Instead, any disturbance amplifies local restoring forces—hence the “asymptotic freedom” at short distance and “confinement” at long distance:
At short range, internal coherence is stable and self-balanced → weak interaction (asymptotic freedom).
At long range, coherence begins to fail → strong restoring response (confinement).
This dual behavior emerges naturally from the energy–phase balance of the self-rotating field, without any need for running coupling constants or renormalization procedures.
VI. Reinterpreting Gluons and Color Exchange
In QCD, gluons are massless vector bosons carrying color and anticolor, serving as mediators of color exchange.
In NQT, this “exchange” has a direct physical meaning: it is the transfer of local coherence phase between neighboring vortices through their shared magnetic flux lines.
A gluon is therefore a localized disturbance in the coherence linkage—a real oscillatory pulse in the coupled magnetic flux channel.
Its “color charge” labels which pair of rotational modes are interacting (which coherence phases are adjusting).
This gives the entire SU(3) algebra a geometrical interpretation:
8 gluon states = 8 independent phase-exchange channels among three vortex modes.
The symmetry breaking corresponds to the loss of one redundant degree of phase rotation (global coherence constraint).
Thus, the gauge symmetry of QCD becomes a physical symmetry of rotational coherence, not an abstract internal group.
VII. Hadronization: Coherence Restoration in Composite States
When high-energy collisions disrupt quark coherence, the system immediately seeks to restore internal phase closure—this manifests experimentally as hadronization.
Instead of free quarks emerging, the field reorganizes into closed structures (mesons, baryons) that maintain overall phase neutrality.
The condition of “color neutrality” in QCD corresponds, in NQT, to the closure of total phase circulation:
[
\sum_i \Delta \phi_i = 2\pi n
]
Only such closed configurations are dynamically stable, consistent with the observed absence of isolated quarks.
VIII. Summary Table: QCD vs. Natural Quantum Theory
| Concept | Quantum Chromodynamics | Natural Quantum Theory |
|---|---|---|
| Fundamental symmetry | SU(3) color gauge | Threefold phase–polarization rotation symmetry |
| Quark color | Abstract charge label | Real phase orientation of internal field rotation |
| Gluon | Gauge boson | Coherence-link oscillation of magnetic flux |
| Confinement | Gauge property, nonperturbative | Self-confined magnetic vortex coherence |
| Asymptotic freedom | Running coupling | Stable internal coherence at small scale |
| Color neutrality | Vanishing color charge | Closure of total phase circulation |
| Mass generation | Nonperturbative QCD energy | Magnetic energy stored in coherence imbalance |
IX. Conclusion: The Strong Interaction as the Ultimate Self-Organization of the Field
In Natural Quantum Theory, the strong interaction is not a mysterious “color force” acting in an abstract internal space, but the ultimate manifestation of field self-coherence.
It represents the magnetic–electromagnetic self-binding of extended field vortices at the Compton scale, where phase and polarization are strongly coupled and self-stabilizing.
The success of QCD’s formalism thus reflects, in disguise, a deep physical truth:
that nature’s stability comes from coherence constraints among real fields, not from mathematical group symmetries.
At the deepest level, electromagnetism, weak interaction, and strong interaction are not three separate forces, but three coherence regimes of the same fundamental field:
Phase coherence → Electromagnetism
Polarization coherence → Weak interaction
Rotational coherence → Strong interaction
Their apparent separation in the Standard Model arises only because the mathematical formalism has fragmented what, in reality, is one continuous field hierarchy of coherence.