A key difference has been observed in the behaviour of matter and antimatter particles by researchers working at a particle physics laboratory. A new measurement has been carried out that recorded the decay of a specific type of matter particle and its antimatter equivalent. This development is being seen as significant because it may explain why the universe is filled with matter while antimatter is nearly absent. The discovery has been described as a step towards solving one of physics’ biggest mysteries.

New Study Reveals Baryon Decay Difference

According to the research shared by the LHCb experiment at CERN and posted on the arXiv preprint server, a difference has been recorded in how a particle called the beauty-lambda baryon and its antimatter counterpart decay. These particles belong to the proton family and are classified as baryons. The report further added that the decay was observed into a proton and three mesons based on data collected between 2009 and 2018.

The evidence suggests that the decay of the beauty-lambda baryon differs from its antimatter twin. According to sources involved in the study the likelihood of this difference being a random occurrence is less than one in three million. Tim Gershon who is a particle physicist at the University of Warwick and part of the research team told Nature that this is the first time such a difference has been spotted in baryons.

Experts Say Findings Could Aid Understanding of Matter’s Prevalence

Tara Shears who is a particle physicist at the University of Liverpool stated to Nature that the observation could offer new insight into why matter is found in abundance while antimatter is not. She said that this imbalance is one of the major unresolved questions in physics.

Yuval Grossman a theoretical physicist from Cornell University mentioned to Nature that while the current measurement does not fully explain the imbalance it helps add a crucial piece to the puzzle.