Page "Quantum chromodynamics" Paragraph 73

A further analogy consists in the already mentioned similarity to polymer physics, where, analogously to Wilson Loops, so-called " entangled nets " appear, which are important for the formation of the entropy-elasticity ( force proportional to the length ) of a rubber band.

The non-abelian character of the SU ( 3 ) corresponds thereby to the non-trivial " chemical links “, which glue different loop segments together, and " asymptotic freedom " means in the polymer analogy simply the fact that in the short-wave limit, i. e. for ( where R < sub > c </ sub > is a characteristic correlation-length for the glued loops, corresponding to the above-mentioned " bag radius ", while λ < sub > w </ sub > is the wavelength of an excitation ) any non-trivial correlation vanishes totally, as if the system had crystallized.