Abstract
We report on recent developments in positronium work in the frame of antihydrogen production through charge exchange in the AEgIS collaboration [1]. In particular, we present a new technique based on spatially imaging a cloud of positronium by collecting the positrons emitted by photoionization. This background free diagnostic proves to be highly efficient and opens up new opportunities for spectroscopy on antimatter, control and laser manipulation of positronium clouds as well as Doppler velocimetry.
Highlights
At CERN, the antiproton decelerator (AD) has been producing cold (5.3 MeV) antiprotons since the year 2000 following reaction (1) happening when high energy protons are focused in an Iridium target
We start with a presentation of the AEgIS experiment and focus on recent advances in positronium work related to measuring the temperature of the Ps cloud used in AEgIS
We have presented the principle of the original charge exchange reaction for antihydrogen production developed in the frame of the AEgIS collaboration
Summary
The existence of antimatter has first been predicted theoretically as a solution of Paul Dirac’s equation uniting quantum mechanics and relativity in 1928 [2]. This consists in transferring a positron from a positronium atom (referred to as Ps hereafter; it is the bound state of an electron and its antiparticle, the positron) towards an antiproton. We report on a new diagnostic based on a spatial imaging of the Ps cloud In this setup, positrons photoionized from electronically excited positronium atoms are trapped along the lines of magnetic field of the trap and accelerated towards a stack of Micro Channel Plate (MCP) coupled to a phosphor screen imaged with a Charge Coupled Camera (CCD). This diagnostic is background free, single shot and can be used for spectroscopy as well as for diagnostic on the dimension of the Ps cloud and its manipulation with lasers
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