CP violation and molecular physics

Barron, L.D. (1994) CP violation and molecular physics. Chemical Physics Letters, 221(3-4), pp. 311-316. (doi: 10.1016/0009-2614(94)00253-3)

Abstract

The proof that a particle and its antiparticle have identical rest mass, which is based on the CPT invariance of the Hamiltonian, can be adapted to show that the CP enantiomers of a chiral molecule remain degenerate even in the presence of CP violation. This reinforces an earlier suggestion that the force responsible for CP violation exhibits false chirality with respect to CP enantiomorphism and leads naturally to the idea that the CP violation observed in the neutral K-meson system is analogous to a special type of chemical catalysis since it affects the rates of certain particle—antiparticle interconversion pathways (via a break-down in microscopic reversibility) without affecting the initial and final particle energies and hence the equilibrium thermodynamics. CP violation of this type is unlikely to have any direct manifestations in molecular physics.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Barron, Professor Laurence
• Authors: Barron, L.D.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Chemistry
• Journal Name: Chemical Physics Letters
• Publisher: Elsevier Science B.V.
• ISSN: 0009-2614
• ISSN (Online): 1873-4448