English

Who discovered positron annihilation?

History and Philosophy of Physics 2022-01-19 v3

Abstract

In the early 1930s, the positron, pair production, and, at last, positron annihilation were discovered. Over the years, several scientists - commonly, Thibaud and Joliot - have been credited with the discovery of the annihilation radiation. A conversation between Werner Heisenberg and Theodor Heiting prompted me to examine relevant publications, when these were submitted and published, and how experimental results were interpreted in the relevant articles. I argue that it was Theodor Heiting - usually not mentioned at all in relevant publications - who discovered positron annihilation, and that he should receive proper credit.

Cite

@article{arxiv.1809.04815,
  title  = {Who discovered positron annihilation?},
  author = {Tim Dunker},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1809.04815},
  year   = {2022}
}

Comments

Submitted to European Physical Journal H

R2 v1 2026-06-23T04:04:58.287Z