How is positrons and anti-hydrogen created?

  • Thread starter alemsalem
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In summary, positrons are particles with the same mass as electrons but with a positive charge, while anti-hydrogen is made up of an antiproton and a positron. They are created through processes such as pair production and particle acceleration. The creation of anti-hydrogen is important because it allows for the study of antimatter and its properties, which can aid in understanding fundamental laws of physics and potentially lead to new technologies. While it is currently challenging to create large amounts of anti-hydrogen, advancements in methods for producing and manipulating antimatter are being made. The study of anti-hydrogen could have applications in energy production, medical imaging, space travel, and understanding the origins of the universe.
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alemsalem
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I just read that physicists at CERN created anti-hydrogen, and I'm wondering how exactly do you create positrons or anti-protons do you collide something and then somehow pick the mass and charge of the positron or is it created by itself? same for anti-protons?
 
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  • #2
You can create positrons by shooting high energy gamma rays into the nucleus of some atoms and it can cause pair production. Not sure if this is how they did it though.
 

Related to How is positrons and anti-hydrogen created?

1. What are positrons and anti-hydrogen?

Positrons are subatomic particles with the same mass as an electron but with a positive charge. Anti-hydrogen is the antimatter counterpart of hydrogen, composed of an antiproton and a positron.

2. How are positrons and anti-hydrogen created?

Positrons can be created through a process called pair production, where a high-energy photon interacts with matter to produce an electron-positron pair. Anti-hydrogen can be created through a similar process, where high-energy antiprotons are combined with positrons in a particle accelerator.

3. Why is the creation of anti-hydrogen important?

The creation of anti-hydrogen allows scientists to study the properties of antimatter and compare them to those of regular matter. This can help us understand the fundamental laws of physics and potentially lead to new technologies.

4. Is it possible to create large amounts of anti-hydrogen?

Currently, it is challenging to create large amounts of anti-hydrogen due to the difficulty of trapping and storing antimatter. However, scientists are continually developing new methods to produce and manipulate antimatter more efficiently.

5. What are the potential applications of anti-hydrogen?

The study of anti-hydrogen could potentially lead to advancements in fields such as energy production, medical imaging, and space travel. Additionally, it could help us understand the origins of the universe and the prevalence of matter over antimatter.

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