Editing Hadronization (section)

==The top quark does not hadronize==
The [[top quark]], however, decays via the [[weak force]] with a mean lifetime of 5×10<sup>−25</sup> seconds. Unlike all other weak interactions, which typically are much slower than strong interactions, the top quark weak decay is uniquely shorter than the time scale at which the [[strong force]] of QCD acts, so a top quark decays before it can hadronize.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Abazov |first1=V.M. |last2=Abbott |first2=B. |last3=Abolins |first3=M. |last4=Acharya |first4=B.S. |last5=Adams |first5=M. |last6=Adams  |first6=T. |last7=Aguilo |first7=E. |last8=Ahn |first8=S.H. |last9=Ahsan |first9=M. |last10=Alexeev |first10=G.D. |last11=Alkhazov |first11=G. |last12=Alton |first12=A. |last13=Alverson |first13=G. |last14=Alves |first14=G.A. |last15=Anastasoaie |first15=M. |last16=Ancu |first16=L.S. |last17=Andeen |first17=T. |last18=Anderson |first18=S. |last19=Anzelc |first19=M.S. |last20=Aoki |first20=M. |last21=Arnoud |first21=Y. |last22=Arov |first22=M. |last23=Arthaud |first23=M. |last24=Askew |first24=A. |last25=Åsman |first25=B. |last26=Assis Jesus |first26=A.C.S. |last27=Atramentov |first27=O. |last28=Avila |first28=C. |last29=Ay |first29=C. |last30=Badaud |first30=F. |display-authors=6 |year=2008 |title=Evidence for production of single top quarks |journal=Physical Review D |volume=78 |issue=1 |page=012005 |arxiv=0803.0739 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevD.78.012005|bibcode=2008PhRvD..78a2005A |s2cid=204894756 }}</ref> The [[top quark]] is therefore almost a free particle.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Seidel |first1=Katja |last2=Simon |first2=Frank |last3=Tesař |first3=Michal |last4=Poss |first4=Stephane |date=August 2013 |title=Top quark mass measurements at and above threshold at CLIC |journal=The European Physical Journal C |volume=73 |issue=8 |page=2530 |doi=10.1140/epjc/s10052-013-2530-7 |issn=1434-6044 |arxiv=1303.3758 |bibcode=2013EPJC...73.2530S|s2cid=118529845 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Alioli |first1=S. |last2=Fernandez |first2=P. |last3=Fuster |first3=J. |last4=Irles |first4=A. |last5=Moch |first5=S. |last6=Uwer |first6=P. |last7=Vos |first7=M. |date=May 2013 |title=A new observable to measure the top-quark mass at hadron colliders |journal=The European Physical Journal C |volume=73 |issue=5 |page=2438 |doi=10.1140/epjc/s10052-013-2438-2 |arxiv=1303.6415 |issn=1434-6044 |bibcode=2013EPJC...73.2438A|s2cid=20136858 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gao |first1=Jun |last2=Li |first2=Chong Sheng |last3=Zhu |first3=Hua Xing |date=2013-01-24 |df=dmy-all |title=Top-quark decay at next-to-next-to-leading order in QCD |journal=Physical Review Letters |volume=110 |issue=4 |page=042001 |doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.042001 |pmid=25166153 |issn=0031-9007 |arxiv=1210.2808|bibcode=2013PhRvL.110d2001G |s2cid=5101838 }}</ref>