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AWAN Cloud Chamber
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(left) Alpha tracks from Uranitite (right) Alpha tracks from Americium-241
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Vacuum Test of AWAN

Thursday 9 July 2020

Historical Photo: Alpha Particles in Cloud Chamber in Strong Magnetic Field.

Alpha particles does not bend easily under magnetic field due to its low charge to mass ratio. To show appreciable curvature in cloud chamber tracks, a (very) strong magnetic flux density of 4 T was used by P. L. Kapitza:


The magnetic field is directed perpendicularly out of the screen. Notice the shorter tracks curves more strongly than longer tracks. One of those tracks shows large angle deflection near its end, presumably the result of a close nuclear encounter. 

Image from: P. Kapitza, "α-ray tracks in a strong magnetic field", Proceedings of the Royal Society A, 106, 622, (1924). Text adapted from G.A.G. Bennet, Electricity and Modern Physics, second edition, 1974.  

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