So if you have turned a lead atom into gold, how do you know? In the ALICE experiment, they use special detectors called zero-degree calorimeters to count the protons stripped out of the lead nuclei.

The only difference between a lead atom and a gold atom is three protons. Lead has 82, gold has 79. So, in theory, stripping three protons from a lead nucleus should result in gold.

A lead nucleus emits an intense electromagnetic field. In near-misses, a reaction known as electromagnetic dissociation can occur. The lead atom's nucleus vibrates and ejects three of its protons ...

So if you have turned a lead atom into gold, how do you know? In the ALICE experiment, they use special detectors called zero-degree calorimeters to count the protons stripped out of the lead nuclei.

In some of these near-misses, the collision creates a pulse of energy that strips three protons from a lead atom (which has 82 protons), turning it into gold (which has 79).

World's largest atom smasher turned lead into gold — and then destroyed it in an instant. Ben Turner. Fri, May 9, 2025 at 6:41 PM UTC. 3 min read.

In some of these near-misses, the collision creates a pulse of energy that strips three protons from a lead atom (which has 82 protons), turning it into gold (which has 79).

IN a letter to NATURE of January 2, 1926, Prof. Smits records the obtaining of evidence of the transmutation of lead into thallium and into mercury. One of our research students has been employed ...

When two lead ions narrowly miss a head-on collision inside the LHC, their intense electromagnetic fields interact. In some of these near-misses, the collision creates a pulse of energy that ...

So if you have turned a lead atom into gold, how do you know? In the ALICE experiment, they use special detectors called zero-degree calorimeters to count the protons stripped out of the lead nuclei.

Medieval alchemists dreamed of transmuting lead into gold. Today, we know that lead and gold are different elements, and no amount of chemistry can turn one into the other. But our modern ...