Positron (redirected from Positrons)

positron: see antiparticle.

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positron

Subatomic particle having the same mass as an electron but with an electric charge of +1 (an electron has a charge of −1). It constitutes the antiparticle (see antimatter) of an electron. The existence of the positron was a consequence of the electron theory of P.A.M. Dirac (1928), and the particle was discovered in cosmic rays by Carl D. Anderson (1905–1991) in 1932. Though they are stable in a vacuum, positrons react quickly with the electrons of ordinary matter, producing gamma rays by the process of annihilation. They are emitted in positive beta decay of proton-rich radioactive nuclei and are formed in pair production.

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positron

Physics the antiparticle of the electron, having the same mass but an equal and opposite charge. It is produced in certain decay processes and in pair production, annihilation occurring when it collides with an electron

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positron [′päz·ə‚trän]

(particle physics)

An elementary particle having mass equal to that of the electron, and having the same spin and statistics as the electron, but a positive charge equal in magnitude to the electron's negative charge. Also known as positive electron.

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Positron

An elementary particle with mass equal to that of the electron, and positive charge equal in magnitude to the electron's negative charge. The positron is thus the antiparticle (charge-conjugate particle) to the electron. The positron has the same spin and statistics as the electron. Positrons, like electrons, appear as decay products of many heavier particles; electron-positron pairs are produced by high-energy photons in matter. See Antimatter, Electron, Electron-positron pair production, Elementary particle

A positron is, in itself, stable, but cannot exist indefinitely in the presence of matter, for it will ultimately collide with an electron. The two particles will be annihilated as a result of this collision, and photons will be created. However, a positron can first become bound to an electron to form a short-lived “atom” termed positronium. See Positronium

Quantum field theory predicts the occurrence of a fundamental positron creation process in the presence of strong, static electric fields. For a bare nucleus with atomic number Z > 173, it becomes energetically favorable to transform the electron binding energy of larger than 2m₀c², where m₀ is the electron rest mass and c is the speed of light, into simultaneously creating an electron bound to the nucleus and a positron that escapes from the nucleus. This process of spontaneous positron emission has not been observed since atoms with Z > 173 are not available in nature. However, with the introduction of heavy-ion accelerators, it has become possible to simulate such an atom for a short period in a high-energy collision between two stable heavy atoms such as uranium. Experiments have utilized a variety of such collision systems with total Z ranging from 180 to 188 to search for spontaneous positron emission. A number of these experiments reproduce the salient features expected for this process. However, some inconsistencies with the predictions of the theory have yet to be resolved before spontaneous positron emission is established experimentally. See Nuclear molecule, Quasiatom, Supercritical fields

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Positron 

(e⁺), an elementary particle with a positive electric charge. It is the antiparticle of the electron. The masses M_e and spins J of the positron and electron are equal. The electric charges e and magnetic moments μ_e of the two particles are equal in absolute value but opposite in sign: m_e = 9.10956 × 10^-28 g; J = ½, in units of Planck’s constant ℏ; e = 4.80325 × 10^-10 statcoulomb; and μ_e = 1.00116 Bohr magnetons. The existence of a positively charged twin of the electron follows from the Dirac equation; this possibility was pointed out by P. Dirac in 1931. C. D. Anderson detected the particle in cosmic rays in 1932 and called it a positron. The discovery of the positron was of fundamental importance. Unlike the other particles known by mid-1932—the electron, proton, and neutron—the positron was not found in the composition of “ordinary” matter on earth. There arose the concepts of antiparticle and antimatter. The processes of the annihilation and production of positron-electron pairs were predicted by Dirac. When experimentally observed in 1933, the processes became the first convincing evidence of the interconvertibility of elementary particles.

The positron takes part in the electromagnetic, weak, and gravitational interactions and belongs to the class of leptons. In terms of statistical properties, the positron is a fermion.

The positron is stable, but it exists in matter for only a short time because it undergoes annihilation with electrons. In lead, for example, positrons are annihilated on the average in 5 × 10^-11 sec. Under certain conditions, the positron and electron can, before annihilation, form a bound system that is analogous to a hydrogen atom and called positronium. The lifetime of such a system is of the order of 10–7 sec in the case of orthopositronium, where the total spin of the electron and positron is equal to 1. Parapositronium, for which the total spin is equal to zero, has a lifetime of the order of 10–10 sec.

Positrons are formed during interconversion of free elementary particles—such as muon decays and the production of positron-electron pairs by γ-quanta in the electrostatic field of an atomic nucleus—and during the beta decay of certain radioactive isotopes. Positrons obtained from beta decay and pair production are used for research purposes. Thus, the study of the slowing down and subsequent annihilation of positrons in a substance yields a variety of data on the physical and chemical properties of the substance—for example, the velocity distribution of conduction electrons, defects in the crystal lattice, and the kinetics of certain types of chemical reactions. One method of investigation of elementary particles at very high energies is based on colliding beams of accelerated positrons and electrons.

REFERENCES

Dirac, P. A. M. Printsipy kvantovoi mekhaniki. Moscow, 1960. (Translated from English.)
Novozhilov, Iu. V. Elementarnye chastitsy, 3rd ed. Moscow, 1974.
Gol’danskii, V. I. Fizicheskaia khimiia pozitrona i pozitroniia. Moscow, 1968.

E. A. TAGIROV