After almost half a century of research, a team of Hungarian and Swedish scientists discovered the existence of the Odderon, an extremely fleeting particle.
Researchers from the Wigner Research Centre for Physics, the Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Eötvös Loránd University, and the Swedish Lund University confirmed the existence of the Odderon particle using the European Council for Nuclear Research’s Large Hadron Collider (CERN LHC). Their report was presented by the Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences (MATE) on Monday.
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Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is the world’s largest and most powerful particle accelerator. It is a 27-kilometer-long ring of superconducting magnets and accelerating structures which, when used, guide two high-energy particle beams travelling close to the speed of light to collide into each other. In order for the accelerator to function properly, its magnets must be kept at a temperature of negative 271.3 degrees Celsius, colder than outer space.
Tamás Csörgő, head of the Hungarian research group, said that the existence of the Odderon also confirms the existence of multiple similar, combined particles, which could lead to a new chapter in the study of strong interactions and particle theory.
Csörgő brought up that the potential existence of Odderon was suggested in 1973, but the particle accelerators available at the time had not yet developed to the point where they could allow for its discovery.
48 years later, Hungarian researchers created a new method of re-analyzing and screening previously reported experiments and data, facilitating experiments and ultimately the discovery of the particle through CERN’s Large Hadron Collider in Sweden.
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The head of the research group said that the implications of the discovery are not yet completely clear, but that it opens a new chapter in particle physics.
In the featured photo can be seen CERN’s 27 km long Large Hadron Collider. Featured photo via CERN’s website