Posted Monday 10th March 2008 09:51 GMT
@ Bottled it, did you?
Charge conjugation changes a particle into exactly the same particle with the opposite charge (eg: +1 -> -1). Parity conjugation, on the other hand, changes exactly that: the handedness, or "spin" of a particle. It is like reflecting it in a mirror. When one conjugates both the charge and the parity of a particle, this converts said particle into its antiparticle nemesis. Hence if there is some asymmetry in CP, there is some definable difference between particles and antiparticles.
Sheesh, when will some basic degree-level particle physics ever be set out straight? Some would say it is confusing enough as it is...
Mine's the coat with the paper note saying "kick me" being hastily ripped off.
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