One way to remember whether it is a neutrino or an antineutrino (or an electron

Question

One way to remember whether it is a neutrino or an antineutrino (or an electron or a positron) that is involved in a weak-interaction process is to use conservation laws. The weak interaction, in addition to conserving energy, momentum, and angular momentum, conserves charge, a quantity called the lepton number (electrons and neutrinos have lepton number +1, positrons and antineutrinos have lepton number -1, and protons and neutrons have lepton number 0), and a quantity called the baryon number (protons and neutrons have baryon number +1 and electrons, positrons, and neutrinos have baryon number 0). (a) Show that the processes described by equations Q14.1 through Q14.4 conserve charge, lepton number, and baryon number. (b) Imagine that if we hit a proton with particle x having sufficient energy, it turns into a neutron and emits particle y. If x is either a neutrino or an antineutrino, which is it? What is particle y? Explain your reasoning.

Explanation / Answer

Equation Q14.1 through Q14.4 is not given. One needs to provide with all the equations in order to prove the statement.

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