What holds a nucleus together if protons repel other protons in an atom?

Protons are made of two Up and one Down quark. The neutron is made of two Down and one Up quark. The Up quarks have a 2/3 positive charge and the Down has a 1/3 negative charge. Fractional charges are a pretty funny concept, but remember we (humans) made up the unit of charge that a proton has, so its very possible that there could be a smaller division of charge. If you add those charges you will see that sum is positive one for the proton and 0 for the neutron.


The answer is that, in short, they don't call it the strong force for nothing. The strong force between the quarks in one proton and the quarks in another proton is strong enough to overwhelm the repulsive electromagnetic force.

This is called the residual strong interaction, and it is what "glues" the nucleus together.