QCD Confinement
Quarks are permanently confined by gluon flux tubes (QCD strings). As quarks separate, the string tension σ ~ 1 GeV/fm stores energy. When E > 2m_q, the string "breaks" by creating a quark-antiquark pair.
Quark separation (fm)
1.0
String tension κ (GeV/fm)
1.0
Pull Quarks!