Penning trap Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description

Penning traps are devices for the storage of charged particles using a constant magnetic field and a constant electric field. This kind of trap is particularly well suited for precision measurements of properties of ions and stable subatomic particles which have electric charge .

Penning traps use a strong axial magnetic field to confine particles radially and a quadrupole electric field to confine the particles axially. The magnetic field causes charged particles to move in spirals, and the electric field prevents particles from spiraling out of the trap along the magnetic field lines.

The frequency of the oscillation of charged particles in a magnetic field is called the cyclotron frequency, and it depends mostly on the ratio of electric charge to mass and strength of the magnetic field. These frequencies can be measured very accurately and can be used to measure the ratios of masses. Many of the highest-precision mass measurements (masses of the electron , proton , ²H, ¹²C, ²⁰Ne and ²⁸Si) come from Penning traps.

There is also an analytical technique which uses a Penning trap called Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance spectroscopy, or FTICR.

This is an Article on Penning trap. Page Contains Information, Facts Details or Explanation Guide About Penning trap

	Web www.E-paranoids.com