According to a paper published by the journal Nature, ALPHA collaboration at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, has achieved a significant milestone in determining the properties of antimatter atoms. Back in June 2011, it was reported that ALPHA collaboration had regularly captured antihydrogen atoms for an extended amount of time.
The recent advancement of ALPHA is a key milestone and paves the way to form accurate comparisons between ordinary matter atoms of and antimatter atoms, thus revealing the secret behind particle physics and promoting better understanding on the existence of matter in the universe.
According to Jeffrey Hangst, ALPHA collaboration spokesman, it has been shown that the inner structure of the antihydrogen atom can be explored, and now it is possible to devise experiments to make thorough measurements of antiatoms.
At present, the universe seems to be made up of only matter, but both matter and antimatter could have co-existed in equivalent amounts at the time of Big Bang. However, this antimatter has disappeared, which indicates that nature could have selected matter over antimatter. A detailed analysis of antihydrogen atoms may offer a strong tool for studying this preference.
In hydrogen atoms, an electron orbits a nucleus. The atoms can be activated when a light is fired at them. Following this, the electrons shift to higher orbits and finally fall back to their ground state by producing light. The distribution of the light produced creates an accurate spectrum that is extraordinary to hydrogen. According to the laws of physics, antihydrogen must have s similar spectrum to hydrogen, and determining this spectrum is the main objective of the ALPHA collaboration.
Hangst continued that hydrogen is abundantly available in the universe and its structure is well-known. However, only time alone will help in unraveling the mystery behind antihydrogen.
In a recently published paper, ALPHA announced the first measurement of the antihydrogen spectrum. In the ALPHA tool, antihydrogen atoms are captured through an advanced arrangement of magnetic fields, which behave on the magnetic direction of the antihydrogen atoms. When microwaves are illuminated with an accurately tuned frequency on the antihydrogen atoms, ALPHA collaboration turns over the magnetic direction of the antiatoms, thus releasing antihydrogen from the trap. Once this occurs, the antihydrogen atoms join ordinary matter and disintegrate, leaving behind a distinctive outline in particle detectors around the trap. This measurement demonstrates that it is now feasible to design experiments in which the antihydrogen atoms’ internal properties can be modified by shining microwaves on them.
In the coming days, ALPHA will focus on enhancing the accuracy of the microwave measurements. It will carry out corresponding antihydrogen spectrum measurements by utilizing lasers.
Source: http://public.web.cern.ch/