The basic forces in nature
Contemporary Physics Education Project

Fundamental Forces

The interactions in the Universe are governed by four forces (strong, weak, electromagnetic and gravitational).

Physicists are trying to find one theory that would describe all the forces in nature as a single law. So far they have succeeded in producing a single theory that describes the weak and electromagnetic forces (called electroweak force). The strong and gravitational forces are not yet described by this theory.

FUNDAMENTAL FORCES

Interaction Relative Strength Range Mediating Particle
Strong 1 Short Gluon
Electromagnetic 0.0073 Long Photon
Weak 10-9 Very Short W,Z
Gravitational 10-38 Long Graviton

Table courtesy of University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario (Cananda)

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