The Universe’s Mirror

CP Violation Confirmed in Baryons: CERN’s LHCb experiment has confirmed Charge-Parity (CP) violation in baryons, specifically the lambda-b (Λb) particle. This is the first discovery of CP violation in baryons to surpass the five-sigma statistical threshold.

What is CP Violation? It’s a difference in the behavior of matter and antimatter under combined charge conjugation (C) and parity transformation (P). Ideally, matter and antimatter should behave identically.

Lambda-b Baryon Decay: Scientists observed the lambda-b baryon decaying into a proton, a kaon, and two pions. A difference in decay rate between the lambda-b baryon and its antimatter counterpart signifies CP violation.

Matter and Antimatter Basics: Matter has mass and occupies space, composed of atoms and molecules. Antimatter consists of particles that are mirror counterparts of matter, with opposite electric charge.

Matter-Antimatter Interaction: When matter and antimatter collide, they annihilate each other, producing gamma rays.

Baryon Asymmetry Importance: The universe’s dominance of matter over antimatter (baryon asymmetry) remains a significant unsolved puzzle in physics.

Antimatter Uses: Positrons are used in PET scans for cancer detection. CERN produces nanograms of antimatter annually for research.