BRAINCAKEThe Discovery of the Positron
American physicist Carl Anderson was using a cloud chamber to examine trails left by cosmic rays.
Sign in free to see the rest of this lesson, the R.E.C.I.P.E. recall steps and the quiz
BrainCake is free. Make an account in seconds and pick up where this page stops.
Key terms in this lesson
- Beta particle
- A fast-moving electron (beta-minus) or positron (beta-plus) emitted from the nucleus when a neutron changes into a proton, or a proton changes into a neutron, during beta decay.
- Antiparticle
- A particle with the same rest mass as its corresponding particle but with opposite charge and opposite values of other quantum properties.
- Cosmic rays
- High-energy particles, mostly fast protons and small nuclei, that travel through space and produce showers of short-lived particles on entering the Earth's atmosphere.
More in Particles and Radiation
- Photons
- Anti-matter
- Annihilation
- Pair Production
- The Electromagnetic Force
- Feynman Diagrams
- The Weak Nuclear Force
- The W Boson
All 22 lessons in Particles and Radiation · All AQA AS-level Physics topics