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In Cosmology
What can positrons do?
Positrons are anti-electrons; they're antimatter. There are a couple of sources of positrons, and in our universe, the positron is looking for an electron to combine with so i…t can return from whence it came. This process, called mutual annihilation, sees the positron combine with the electron to produce two fairly high energy gamma rays (leaving the scene in opposite directions). In another universe, an antimatter one, the positron orbits around antimatter atomic nuclei. It also forms positricity in that universe. The positron is also used in medical imaging in positron emission tomography (PET) scans. The positron doesn't have a lot of penetrating power, and it won't travel far after it is released. But it is worth noting that those gamma rays that are released when a positron and an electron mutually annihilate each other are pretty high energy ones. They have a lot of penetrating power, and they can do considerable biological damage if a living thing is exposed to a positron source for too long. The PET scan only ends up "minimally exposing" an individual during the procedure, in case you're wondering. Links can be found below for more information. (MORE)
