Electromagnetic Processes in Antiproton Annihilation: The EMP-section
The proton is one of the most prominent particles in physics. Together with the neutron, it is the building block from which all atomic nuclei are composed. In principle, physicists have known for a long time what a proton consists of:
It is composed of three quarks that are held together by the strong interaction, one of the four fundamental forces of nature. Nevertheless, there are still some mysteries about the structure of the proton: What is it like in detail? How does its mass come about, and how does its spin, its quantum mechanical angular momentum, come about?
Questions such as these are being investigated by the section "Electromagnetic Processes" (EMP) of the Helmholtz Institute Mainz. The focus is on work on a new particle detector called PANDA – an experiment that will be developed at the new ACCELERATOR complex FAIR at the GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt. The team that builds and will operate the detector in the future consists of about 500 experts from 17 countries.
Details on the HIM website.
