Transient Antihydrogen Production in a Paul Trap

Although positrons and antiprotons have vastly different masses, we show that it is possible to store both particle species simultaneously in a Paul trap, using the space charge of the positron cloud as a trap for the antiprotons. Computer simulations confirm the validity of this new trapping mechanism. In addition, the simulations show transient antihydrogen production that manifests itself in the intermittent production of bound positron-antiproton Rydberg states. Since realistic trapping parameters are used in the simulations, (i) simultaneous positron-antiproton trapping and (ii) transient antihydrogen formation should be experimentally observable in a Paul trap. Strategies are suggested to lengthen the lifetime of antihydrogen in the Paul trap.