Cosmic ray strangelets
نویسنده
چکیده
Searching for strangelets in cosmic rays may be the best way to test the possible stability of strange quark matter. I review calculations of the astrophysical strangelet flux in the GV–TV rigidity range, which will be investigated from the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02) on the International Space Station, and discuss the merits of strangelets as ultra-high energy cosmic rays at EeV–ZeV energies, beyond the Greisen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin cutoff. I also address some “counter-arguments” sometimes raised against the possibility of stable strangelets. It will be argued that stability of strange quark matter remains a viable possibility, which must be tested by experiments.
منابع مشابه
Strangelets, Nuclearites, Q-balls—A Brief Overview
Astrophysical bounds on the properties and abundances of primordial quark nuggets and cosmic ray strangelets are reviewed. New experiments to search for cosmic ray strangelets in lunar soil and from the International Space Station are described. Analogies with baryonic and supersymmetric Q-balls are briefly mentioned, as are prospects for strangelets as ultra-high energy cosmic rays.
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