Evidence for Detection of a Moving Magnetic Monopole

P. B. Price; E. K. Shirk; W. Z. Osborne; L. S. Pinsky

doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.35.487

Evidence for Detection of a Moving Magnetic Monopole

P. B. Price, E. K. Shirk, W. Z. Osborne, and L. S. Pinsky

Phys. Rev. Lett. 35, 487 – Published 25 August 1975

Abstract

A very heavy particle passed through a balloon-borne stack of Cherenkov film, emulsion, and Lexan sheets. In 33 Lexan sheets it produced tracks expected of either a nucleus with $125 ≲ Z ≲ 137$ and $β ≲ 0.92$ or a magnetic monopole with $g = 137 e$ . Its track structure in emulsion indicated it was moving downward with $β = {0.5}_{- 0.05}^{+ 0.1}$ and was either a nucleus with $Z \approx 80$ or a monopole with $g = 137 e$ . These facts strongly favor identification of the particle as a magnetic monopole of strength $g = 137 e$ and mass $> 200 m_{p}$ .

Received 4 August 1975

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.35.487

Authors & Affiliations

P. B. Price^* and E. K. Shirk^*

Physics Department, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720

W. Z. Osborne^† and L. S. Pinsky

Physics Department, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77004

^*Work supported by National Aeronautics and Space Administration Grant No. NGR 05-003-376 and U. S. Energy Research and Development Administration Contract No. AT (04-3)-34.
^†Work supported by National Aeronautics and Space Administration Grant No. NGR 44-005-041.