Physicists offer new approach to studying antimatter in the lab

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What happens when two atoms, each made up of an electron and its antimatter counterpart, called the positron, collide with each other? UC Riverside physicists are able to see for the first time in the laboratory that these atoms, which are called positronium atoms and are unstable by nature, become even more unstable after the collision. The positronium atoms are seen to destroy one another, turning into gamma radiation, a powerful type of electromagnetic radiation.


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All News summaries for October 31, 2005

Physicists investigate how time moves forward

Sep 05, 2008 | User rating: not rated yet
As humans, we have a very intuitive concept of time, and of the differences between the past, present, and future. But, as scientists Edward Feng of the University of California, Berkeley, and Gavin Crooks of the Lawrence ...

Michigan integral to world's largest physics experiment

Sep 05, 2008 | User rating: not rated yet
After 20 years of construction, a machine that could either verify or nullify the prevailing theory of particle physics is about to begin its mission. CERN's epic Large Hadron Collider (LHC) project currently involves 25 ...

LHC switch-on fears are completely unfounded: new research paper

Sep 05, 2008 | User rating: not rated yet
(PhysOrg.com) -- A new report published on Friday, 5 September, provides the most comprehensive evidence available to confirm that the Large Hadron Collider (LHC)'s switch-on, due on Wednesday next week, poses no threat to ...

A fine-tooth comb to measure the accelerating universe

Sep 04, 2008 | User rating: not rated yet
Astronomical instruments needed to answer crucial questions, such as the search for Earth-like planets or the way the Universe expands, have come a step closer with the first demonstration at the telescope ...

Team studies how new helium ion microscope measures up

Sep 04, 2008 | User rating: not rated yet
Just as test pilots push planes to explore their limits, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology are probing the newest microscope technology to further improve measurement accuracy ...