Tech UPTechnologyTrap antimatter for 16 minutes
Technology

Trap antimatter for 16 minutes

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alpha-cern The Alpha experiment of the European Laboratory for Particle Physics (CERN) has managed to trap antimatter atoms for more than 1,000 seconds, around 16 minutes , which will allow them to start studying their properties in detail, according to an article published in the journal Nature Physics .

In total, the scientists managed to catch 300 anti-atoms, which will allow to make an accurate map of antihydrogen, the antimatter version of hydrogen , using laser or microwave spectrography, and compare it with the hydrogen atom. A hydrogen atom consists of an electron bound to a proton, while in antihydrogen a positron (the "mirror" of the electron) is associated with an antiproton.

Thanks to this feat, experts now have "enough time" to be able to study antimatter, as well as find out how gravity influences an antimatter atom. The experiment's spokesman, Jeffrey Hangst of Aarhus University, said he plans to make accurate measurements of the trapped antihydrogen "before the end of the year."

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