| 1. |
- Banerjee, D., et al.
(författare)
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Towards a test of the Weak Equivalence Principle of gravity using anti-hydrogen at CERN
- 2016
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Ingår i: 2016 Conference On Precision Electromagnetic Measurements (CPEM 2016). - 9781467391344
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of the GBAR (Gravitational Behavior of Antimatter at Rest) experiment is to measure the free fall acceleration of an antihydrogen atom, in the terrestrial gravitational field at CERN and therefore test the Weak Equivalence Principle with antimatter. The aim is to measure the local gravity with a 1% uncertainty which can be reduced to few parts of 10(-3).
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| 2. |
- Blumer, P., et al.
(författare)
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Positron accumulation in the GBAR experiment
- 2022
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Ingår i: Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A. - : Elsevier BV. - 0168-9002 .- 1872-9576. ; 1040
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present a description of the GBAR positron (e+) trapping apparatus, which consists of a three stage Buffer Gas Trap (BGT) followed by a High Field Penning Trap (HFT), and discuss its performance. The overall goal of the GBAR experiment is to measure the acceleration of the neutral antihydrogen (H¯) atom in the terrestrial gravitational field by neutralising a positive antihydrogen ion (H¯+), which has been cooled to a low temperature, and observing the subsequent H¯ annihilation following free fall. To produce one H¯+ ion, about 1010 positrons, efficiently converted into positronium (Ps), together with about 107 antiprotons (p¯), are required. The positrons, produced from an electron linac-based system, are accumulated first in the BGT whereafter they are stacked in the ultra-high vacuum HFT, where we have been able to trap 1.4(2) × 109 positrons in 1100 s.
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| 3. |
- Charlton, M., et al.
(författare)
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Positron production using a 9 MeV electron linac for the GBAR experiment
- 2021
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Ingår i: Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A. - : Elsevier BV. - 0168-9002 .- 1872-9576. ; 985
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- For the GBAR (Gravitational Behaviour of Antihydrogen at Rest) experiment at CERN's Antiproton Decelerator (AD) facility we have constructed a source of slow positrons, which uses a low-energy electron linear accelerator (linac). The driver linac produces electrons of 9 MeV kinetic energy that create positrons from bremsstrahlung-induced pair production. Staying below 10 MeV ensures no persistent radioactive activation in the target zone and that the radiation level outside the biological shield is safe for public access. An annealed tungsten-mesh assembly placed directly behind the target acts as a positron moderator. The system produces 5 x 10(7) slow positrons per second, a performance demonstrating that a low-energy electron linac is a superior choice over positron-emitting radioactive sources for high positron flux.
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| 4. |
- Husson, A., et al.
(författare)
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A pulsed high-voltage decelerator system to deliver low-energy antiprotons
- 2021
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Ingår i: Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A. - : Elsevier BV. - 0168-9002 .- 1872-9576. ; 1002
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The GBAR (Gravitational Behavior of Antihydrogen at Rest) experiment at CERN requires efficient deceleration of 100 keV antiprotons provided by the new ELENA synchrotron ring to synthesize antihydrogen. This is accomplished using electrostatic deceleration optics and a drift tube that is designed to switch from -99 kV to ground when the antiproton bunch is inside – essentially a charged particle “elevator” – producing a 1 keV pulse. We describe the simulation, design, construction and successful testing of the decelerator device at -92 kV on-line with antiprotons from ELENA.
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| 5. |
- Niang, S., et al.
(författare)
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Accumulation of Positrons from a LINAC Based Source
- 2020
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Ingår i: Acta Physica Polonica. A. - 0587-4246 .- 1898-794X. ; 137:2, s. 164-166
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The GBAR experiment aims to measure the gravitational acceleration of antihydrogen (H) over bar. It will use (H) over bar (+) ions formed by the interaction of antiprotons with a dense positronium cloud, which will require about 1010 positrons to produce one (H) over bar (+). We present the first results on the positron accumulation, reaching 3.8 +/- 0.4x10(8) e(+) collected in 560 s.
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| 6. |
- Perez, P., et al.
(författare)
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The GBAR antimatter gravity experiment
- 2015
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Ingår i: Hyperfine Interactions. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0304-3843 .- 1572-9540. ; , s. 21-27
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The GBAR project (Gravitational Behaviour of Anti hydrogen at Rest) at CERN, aims to measure the free fall acceleration of ultracold neutral anti hydrogen atoms in the terrestrial gravitational field. The experiment consists preparing anti hydrogen ions (one antiproton and two positrons) and sympathetically cooling them with Be (+) ions to less than 10 mu K. The ultracold ions will then be photo-ionized just above threshold, and the free fall time over a known distance measured. We will describe the project, the accuracy that can be reached by standard techniques, and discuss a possible improvement to reduce the vertical velocity spread.
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| 7. |
- Ahmadi, M., et al.
(författare)
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Antihydrogen accumulation for fundamental symmetry tests
- 2017
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Ingår i: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 8
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Antihydrogen, a positron bound to an antiproton, is the simplest anti-atom. Its structure and properties are expected to mirror those of the hydrogen atom. Prospects for precision comparisons of the two, as tests of fundamental symmetries, are driving a vibrant programme of research. In this regard, a limiting factor in most experiments is the availability of large numbers of cold ground state antihydrogen atoms. Here, we describe how an improved synthesis process results in a maximum rate of 10.5 +/- 0.6 atoms trapped and detected per cycle, corresponding to more than an order of magnitude improvement over previous work. Additionally, we demonstrate how detailed control of electron, positron and antiproton plasmas enables repeated formation and trapping of antihydrogen atoms, with the simultaneous retention of atoms produced in previous cycles. We report a record of 54 detected annihilation events from a single release of the trapped anti-atoms accumulated from five consecutive cycles.
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| 8. |
- Ahmadi, M., et al.
(författare)
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Characterization of the 1S-2S transition in antihydrogen
- 2018
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 557:7703, s. 71-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In 1928, Dirac published an equation(1) that combined quantum mechanics and special relativity. Negative-energy solutions to this equation, rather than being unphysical as initially thought, represented a class of hitherto unobserved and unimagined particles-antimatter. The existence of particles of antimatter was confirmed with the discovery of the positron(2) (or anti-electron) by Anderson in 1932, but it is still unknown why matter, rather than antimatter, survived after the Big Bang. As a result, experimental studies of antimatter(3-7), including tests of fundamental symmetries such as charge-parity and charge-parity-time, and searches for evidence of primordial antimatter, such as antihelium nuclei, have high priority in contemporary physics research. The fundamental role of the hydrogen atom in the evolution of the Universe and in the historical development of our understanding of quantum physics makes its antimatter counterpart-the antihydrogen atom-of particular interest. Current standard-model physics requires that hydrogen and antihydrogen have the same energy levels and spectral lines. The laser-driven 1S-2S transition was recently observed(8) in antihydrogen. Here we characterize one of the hyperfine components of this transition using magnetically trapped atoms of antihydrogen and compare it to model calculations for hydrogen in our apparatus. We find that the shape of the spectral line agrees very well with that expected for hydrogen and that the resonance frequency agrees with that in hydrogen to about 5 kilohertz out of 2.5 x 10(15) hertz. This is consistent with charge-parity-time invariance at a relative precision of 2 x 10(-12)-two orders of magnitude more precise than the previous determination(8)-corresponding to an absolute energy sensitivity of 2 x 10(-20) GeV.
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| 9. |
- Ahmadi, M., et al.
(författare)
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Enhanced Control and Reproducibility of Non-Neutral Plasmas
- 2018
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Ingår i: Physical Review Letters. - 0031-9007 .- 1079-7114. ; 120:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The simultaneous control of the density and particle number of non-neutral plasmas confined in Penning-Malmberg traps is demonstrated. Control is achieved by setting the plasma's density by applying a rotating electric field while simultaneously fixing its axial potential via evaporative cooling. This novel method is particularly useful for stabilizing positron plasmas, as the procedures used to collect positrons from radioactive sources typically yield plasmas with variable densities and particle numbers; it also simplifies optimization studies that require plasma parameter scans. The reproducibility achieved by applying this technique to the positron and electron plasmas used by the ALPHA antihydrogen experiment at CERN, combined with other developments, contributed to a 10-fold increase in the antiatom trapping rate.
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| 10. |
- Ahmadi, M., et al.
(författare)
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Investigation of the fine structure of antihydrogen
- 2020
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 578:7795, s. 375-380
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- At the historic Shelter Island Conference on the Foundations of Quantum Mechanics in 1947, Willis Lamb reported an unexpected feature in the fine structure of atomic hydrogen: a separation of the 2S(1/2) and 2P(1/2) states(1). The observation of this separation, now known as the Lamb shift, marked an important event in the evolution of modern physics, inspiring others to develop the theory of quantum electrodynamics(2-5). Quantum electrodynamics also describes antimatter, but it has only recently become possible to synthesize and trap atomic antimatter to probe its structure. Mirroring the historical development of quantum atomic physics in the twentieth century, modern measurements on anti-atoms represent a unique approach for testing quantum electrodynamics and the foundational symmetries of the standard model. Here we report measurements of the fine structure in the n = 2 states of antihydrogen, the antimatter counterpart of the hydrogen atom. Using optical excitation of the 1S-2P Lyman-alpha transitions in antihydrogen(6), we determine their frequencies in a magnetic field of 1 tesla to a precision of 16 parts per billion. Assuming the standard Zeeman and hyperfine interactions, we infer the zero-field fine-structure splitting (2P(1/2)-2P(3/2)) in antihydrogen. The resulting value is consistent with the predictions of quantum electrodynamics to a precision of 2 per cent. Using our previously measured value of the 1S-2S transition frequency(6,7), we find that the classic Lamb shift in antihydrogen (2S(1/2)-2P(1/2) splitting at zero field) is consistent with theory at a level of 11 per cent. Our observations represent an important step towards precision measurements of the fine structure and the Lamb shift in the antihydrogen spectrum as tests of the charge-parity-time symmetry(8) and towards the determination of other fundamental quantities, such as the antiproton charge radius(9,10), in this antimatter system. Precision measurements of the 1S-2P transition in antihydrogen that take into account the standard Zeeman and hyperfine effects confirm the predictions of quantum electrodynamics.
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