Origin of electric charge?

Question

Baryons have charges that are the result of a polynomial calculation of their building blocks (quarks)'s fractional charges. But what gives these quarks electric charges? What interactions do they have with photons? And what about leptons, like muons and electrons? How do they get their -1 charge? And then, how do positrons and anti-muons get +1 charge? Same goes for quarks: how does up-antiquarks get -2/3 charge? Or I may want to formulate my question this way: **How does any elementary particle interact with the EM-Force to get an electric charge?**

Answer 1

What gives quarks their electrical charge and properties is still debated and a matter of controversy, as is the properties of Electrons and Leptons. Presently it is easiest to state that these properties are an outcome of the creation of the universe in the Big Bang. One attempt to explain these physical characteristics is String Theory. String Theory is a theoretical framework in which point-like particles of particle physics are replaced by one-dimensional objects called 'strings'. The theory goes on to describe how these strings interact through space with each other. Presently it is just theory.

Physics, and the sciences- rely on the principle that an experiment can be devised in which the results are verifiable and reproducible. Said another way, IF a string theory experiment can not be created with verifiable results, then the whole theory must be treated as philosophy, and not science. This is a holy grail principle of science.

You are living in a time where these issues are being tested, and therefore have a front seat at the show. Stay tuned for further developments.

Answer 2

Charge is a fundamental quantity that each particle has. The Standard Model, as far as I know, doesn't try to explain how they arrive at those values, they just have them. Just like any other fundamental constant, e.g. Planck's Constant, the value just is what it is.