In 2019, group scientists Collaboration of Xenon recorded the “rarest event in physics”: Xenon-124 radioactive disintegration. This item has a time of dear semi -vit 18 sexual years. That is, a period of 1 trillion should be expected to be longer than the age of the universe so that an atom of it decreased naturally.
For its comparison, the universe has approximately 13.8 billion yearsand the earth, approximately 4.5 billion. The estimated time for this type of decay is so long that in practice it has never been observed directly.
The phenomenon, called “Double Electronic Decrement of Capture”It occurs when two electrons in the interior layers are absorbed by the nucleus at the same time. This transforms two protons into neutrons and releases two neutrinos.
The process was scheduled for decades but was only seen thanks to the sensitivity of the National Laboratory of Great SassoIn Italy. This instrument, designated from Xenon1twas designed to find signs of Dark matterAn still invisible form of matter that consists of around 27% of the universe, according to NASA.
“This is the longest half -life time directly measured from any process. This shows the depth that physicists reach almost infinitely rarely,” said Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and team member, physicist Ethan Brown in a statement.
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Xenônio revealed the atomic universe
Xenon1t works with a great Deposit of liquid xenonsA chemical element that, when interacting with particles, releases small flashes of light and electrical loads. These signs are recorded by extremely sensitive sensors.
The experiment is performed in an isolated environment, protected from the natural radiation on the earth’s surface. This configuration can even identify the most subtle events, such as the Xenon-124 registered decay.
The discovery was published in the magazine Nature In April 2019 and involved More than 160 scientists from 11 countries. The study showed that dark -focused experiments may also reveal fundamental phenomena of nuclear physics.
Now Xenon’s collaboration operates the last phase of the experiment: the Xenonntwhich began collecting data by 2021. This new version uses about 6 tons of liquid xenonWith improvements in the sensitivity and control of noise over its predecessor.
The main objective is still the search for signs of dark matter. In addition, Xenonnt continues to research other rare processes of particle physics, such as decay without emission of neutrinos and interactions that involve fundamental particles. The group will continue to look at the space, but will not stop seeing the tiny details of the atomic world.
