In the recent past, a fundamental particle has been claimed to be expe

In the recent past, a fundamental particle has been claimed to be experimentally observed, at a European Laboratory in Geneva, to travel at a speed greater than that of light in vacuum. The name of the particle is

electron

positron

neutron

neutrino

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UPSC CAPF – 2012

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In 2011, the OPERA experiment at the Gran Sasso National Laboratory in Italy (using neutrinos from CERN in Geneva) reported observations suggesting that neutrinos might travel faster than the speed of light in vacuum. This finding caused significant scientific excitement and skepticism.

The particle involved in the experiment claiming superluminal speed was the neutrino. The results were later attributed to experimental errors, specifically a faulty cable connection in the GPS timing system and an oscillator issue, and the initial claim was retracted.

According to Einstein’s theory of special relativity, nothing can travel faster than the speed of light in vacuum (c). The OPERA result, if confirmed, would have fundamentally challenged this principle. Subsequent, more precise experiments confirmed that neutrinos do not travel faster than light.

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