CERN Scientists Turn Lead into Gold
A long-sought alchemic dream has been partially realized, albeit on a minuscule scale. Scientists at CERN, using the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), have successfully converted lead into gold. This isn't the magical transformation of folklore; instead, it involves high-speed collisions of subatomic particles.
The Process
The LHC, typically used to study the conditions shortly after the Big Bang by colliding lead ions, incidentally facilitates this transmutation. The intense collisions can cause lead nuclei to lose protons—lead having only three more protons than gold. This results in the fleeting creation of gold atoms, lasting mere fractions of a second before decaying.
The Yield and Significance
While astonishing, the amount of gold produced is minuscule. Experiments between 2015 and 2018 yielded around 29 picograms; recent upgrades to the LHC have nearly doubled this, but it remains far too small for any practical application, such as jewelry creation. The scientific community is less interested in gold production and more focused on understanding the fundamental nuclear processes underlying this transmutation.
As a spokesperson for the ALICE project at the LHC explained, the ability to detect these subtle transformations provides valuable insights into electromagnetic interactions at the nuclear level.
1 Image of Lead to Gold:
Source: Engadget