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Chien-Shiung Wu's cobalt-60 experiment showed that weak nuclear interactions violate parity: nature can distinguish a process from its mirror image.

When nature refused the mirror

ScienceBiographyHistory

Why it matters

The idea in context

Wu's team aligned radioactive cobalt nuclei at extremely low temperature and counted the electrons emitted during beta decay. They emerged preferentially opposite the nuclear spin, not symmetrically as parity conservation required. The 1957 result confirmed a radical proposal by Tsung-Dao Lee and Chen-Ning Yang. That year's Nobel Prize recognised their theoretical breakthrough but did not include Wu or her experimental collaborators.

Türkçe

Aynı kart, başka bir dilde.

Chien-Shiung Wu'nun kobalt-60 deneyi, zayıf nükleer etkileşimlerin pariteyi ihlal ettiğini gösterdi: Doğa bir süreci ayna görüntüsünden ayırabiliyordu.
Doğa aynaya uymayı reddettiğinde

Wu'nun ekibi radyoaktif kobalt çekirdeklerini çok düşük sıcaklıkta aynı yönde hizaladı ve beta bozunmasında çıkan elektronları saydı. Elektronlar, parite korunumu gereği simetrik dağılmak yerine çoğunlukla çekirdek spininin yönünün tersine çıktı. 1957 sonucu Tsung-Dao Lee ile Chen-Ning Yang'ın cüretkâr önerisini doğruladı. O yılki Nobel Ödülü onların kuramsal atılımını tanıdı; Wu ile deneysel çalışma arkadaşlarını ise kapsamadı.

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Background reading: Chien-Shiung WuAttribution and context are revised when stronger evidence appears. Corrections are welcome through the editorial page.
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