Cluster model of baryons

Baryons are studied in the constituent quark model by reducing the three-body problem to equivalent two-body problems involving a diquark and a quark. Rotational and radial excitations of the diquark or of the third quark are calculated by using nonrelativistic mesonic $q\overline{q}$ potentials which are fitted to meson masses. The results are found to be in good agreement with experimental baryon masses. A strong suppression of the mesonic spin-orbit potential is required for light baryons, in agreement with the conclusion of other authors.