Physicists create tabletop antimatter 'gun'

Phys.Org ^ | 06-25-2013 | Bob Yirka

[Red Badger]

Well, it better not have more than seven positrons in its magazine..................

[Red Badger]

Ping!............

[Larry Lucido]

Does it matter?

[Red Badger]

a. Top-view of the experimental setup. Plastic and Tefon shielding was inserted to reduce the noise due to low energy divergent particles and x-rays. b. Typical positron signal as recorded by the Image Plate. The region labelled with gamma noise is predominantly exposed by the gamma-rays escaping the solid target. c. Typical signal of the electron beam as recorded on the LANEX screen, without a solid target and d. extracted spectrum. Credit: arxiv.org/abs/1304.5379

[Nachum]

Mr. Sulu, set the phasers on “stun”....

[Jim Robinson]

Can it be printed with a 3-D printer?

[Billthedrill]

Basically that means that anyone who happens to have a petawatt laser sitting around could make one of these things. When it gets to the point where we can make them with a 3D printer we got trouble. BTT

[DManA]

may open the pathway for the small-scale study of astrophysical leptonic jets in the laboratory.

Or annihilate your enemies.

[Billthedrill]

18 seconds. Dang it, Jim.

[cuban leaf]

their device could be used to mimic the jet streams from black holes and/or pulsars

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I am under the impression that one would not want to stand too close to either of those things.

Could this be the very beginnings of a viable superweapon capable of destroying matter at the planetary level.

[Kartographer]

Yeah, but can they make on of these??

Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator

[Red Badger]

Two hydrogen atoms were talking.
One said, “I’ve lost my electron.”
The other replied, “Are you sure?”
The first one said, “I’m positive.”............

[Errant]

To achieve this feat, the team fired a petawatt laser at a sample of inert helium gas.

Wow, just imagine what might have happened if the team fired the laser at a sample of "Explosive" helium gas!

[Red Badger]

I certainly hope so, Ollie................

[dfwgator]

Where’s the Ka-Boom? There was supposed to be an Earth-shattering Ka-Boom.

[Hegewisch Dupa]

You mean like the stuff we sold the Nazis??

[Red Badger]

One shudders to think............

[dartuser]

I’ll take one in 40 S&W ...

[Thud]

ping

[Axenolith]

No, but it’s gonna make a hella cool pulse cannon!