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Antimatter is matter
composed of particles with the opposite electrical charges,
quantum numbers, and baryon numbers of normal matter (called
antiparticles). For example, an atom of anti-hydrogen is composed
of negatively charged
protons,
called
antiprotons, orbited by positively charged
electrons
called
positrons. If a particle and it's antiparticle come into
contact with each other, the two are annihilated in a tremendous
release of energy. Common particles of antimatter are
antiprotons,
positrons,
and
antineutrons.
When matter and antimatter come
into contact and mutually annihilate each other, they release the
maximum amount of energy that the constituent particles could
produce. Matter/antimatter reactions release massive amounts of
radiant energy in comparison to the energies extracted by
simple chemical or even nuclear reactions. StarFleet warp cores
depend on a matter/antimatter reaction regulated by dilithium
crystals. |
