Is it possible to make antimatter?
Anti-matter is only matter made up of subatomic particles which are not the ones we’re used to. For example, protons and electrons have their anti-matter opposites in anti-protons and positrons, they have identical mass but opposite charges, so anti-protons are negative in charge and positrons are positive. So the anti- prefix just relates to their charge. Small atoms have indeed been made from this antimatter, but the scale that Dan Brown proposes is unlikely – containing the anti-matter would be very difficult, as any interaction with matter results in a lot of energy being ‘released’. As always Dan Brown takes a fact or two, muddles them about a bit and then produces an entertaining if not rather formulaic story.
