Definition
Hypercharge in particle physics is a quantum number relating the strong interactions of the SU(3) model. Isospin is defined in the SU(2) model while the SU(3) model defines hypercharge.
SU(3) weight diagrams (see below) are 2 dimensional with the coordinates referring to two quantum numbers, Iz, which is the z-component of isospin and Y, which is the hypercharge (the sum of strangeness (S), charm (C), bottomness (B′), topness (T), and baryon number (B)). Mathematically, hypercharge is
and conservation of hypercharge implies a conservation of flavour. Strong interactions conserve hypercharge, but weak interactions do not.
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