Evidence of existence of antineutron


Demonstration of Existence of ANTINEUTRON

This picture, taken in the Berkeley 30 inch propane bubble chamber in 1958, demonstrates the existence of the antineutron - the antiparticle of the neutron.

At the point marked by the arrow, an incoming antiproton beam particle undergoes the `charge exchange' reaction

antiproton + proton --> antineutron + neutron

The kinetic energy of the interacting antiproton is estimated to be about 50 MeV.

The antineutron formed in the process travels an actual distance of 9.5 cm before annihilating in a characteristic `annihilation star' which is consistent with the process

antineutron + proton --> 3 pi+ and 2 pi-

The visible energy released in the star is > 1500 MeV, which is approaching the amount expected when the rest mass of an antineutron and a proton is `converted' into energy. The remaining energy may be assumed to have been carried off by neutral pions.

For full details see L. E. Agnew et al, Phys. Rev., 110 (1958) 994.

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