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The validity of the Weak Equivalence Principle (WEP) as predicted by General Relativity has been tested up to astounding precision using ordinary matter. The lack hitherto of a stable source of a probe being at the same time electrically neutral, cold and stable enough to be measured has prevented highaccuracy testing of the WEP on anti-matter. The AEg̅IS (Antimatter Experiment: Gravity, Interferometry, Spectroscopy) experiment located at CERN's AD (Antiproton Decelerator) facility aims at producing such a probe in the form of a pulsed beam of cold anti-hydrogen, and at measuring by means of a moiré deflectometer the gravitational force that Earth's mass exerts on it. Low temperature and abundance of the H̅ are paramount to attain a high precision measurement. A technique employing a charge-exchange reaction between antiprotons coming from the AD and excited positronium atoms is being developed at AEg̅IS and will be presented hereafter, alongside an overview of the experimental apparatus and the current status of the experiment

The AEgIS (Antimatter Experiment: Gravity, Interferometry, Spectroscopy) is a CERN based experiment with the central aim to measure directly the gravitational acceleration of antihydrogen. Antihydrogen atoms will be produced via charge exchange reactions which will consist of Rydberg-excited positronium atoms sent to cooled antiprotons within an electromagnetic trap. The resulting Rydberg antihydrogen atoms will then be horizontally accelerated by an electric field gradient (Stark effect), they will then pass through a moiré deflectometer. The vertical deflection caused by the Earth's gravitational field will test for the first time the Weak Equivalence Principle for antimatter. Detection will be undertaken via a position sensitive detector. Around 103 antihydrogen atoms are needed for the gravitational measurement to be completed. The present status, current achievements and results will be presented, with special attention toward the laser excitation of positronium (Ps) to the n=3 state and the production of Ps atoms in the transmission geometry.

The weak equivalence principle states that the motion of a body in a gravitational field is independent of its structure or composition. This postulate of general relativity has been tested to very high precision with ordinary matter, but no relevant experimental verification with antimatter has ever been carried out. The AEGIS experiment will measure the gravitational acceleration of antihydrogen to ultimately 1% precision. For this purpose, a pulsed horizontal antihydrogen beam with a velocity of several 100 m s−1 will be produced. Its vertical deflection due to gravity will be detected by a setup consisting of material gratings coupled with a position-sensitive detector, operating as a moiré deflectometer or an atom interferometer. The AEGIS experiment is installed at CERN’s Antiproton Decelerator, currently the only facility in the world which produces copious amounts of low-energy antiprotons. The construction of the setup has been going on since 2010 and is nearing completion. A proof-of-principle experiment with antiprotons has demonstrated that the deflection of antiparticles by a few μm due to an external force can be detected. Technological and scientific development pertaining to specific challenges of the experiment, such as antihydrogen formation by positronium charge exchange or the position-sensitive detection of antihydrogen annihilations, is ongoing.

Investigations on antimatter allow us to shed light on fundamental issues of contemporary physics. The only antiatom presently available, antihydrogen, is produced making use of the Antiproton Decelerator (AD) facility at CERN. International collaborations currently on the floor (ALPHA, ASACUSA and ATRAP) have succeeded in producing antihydrogen and are now involved in its confinement and manipulation. The AEGIS experiment is currently completing the commissioning of the apparatus which will generate and manipulate antiatoms. The present paper, after a report on the main results achieved with antihydrogen physics, gives an overview of the AEGIS experiment, describes its current status and discusses its first target.

The AEg¯ $\overline {\rm{g}}$IS experiment [1] aims at directly measuring the gravitational acceleration g on a beam of cold antihydrogen (H¯$\overline {\rm{H}}$) to a precision of 1%, performing the first test with antimatter of the (WEP) Weak Equivalence Principle. The experimental apparatus is sited at the Antiproton Decelerator (AD) at CERN, Geneva, Switzerland. After production by mixing of antiprotons with Rydberg state positronium atoms (Ps), the H¯$\overline {\rm{H}}$ atoms will be driven to fly horizontally with a velocity of a few 100 ms−1 for a path length of about 1 meter. The small deflection, few tens of μm, will be measured using two material gratings (of period ∼ 80 μm) coupled to a position-sensitive detector working as a moiré deflectometer similarly to what has been done with matter atoms [2]. The shadow pattern produced by the H¯$\overline {\rm{H}}$ beam will then be detected by reconstructing the annihilation points with a spatial resolution (∼ 2 μm) of each antiatom at the end of the flight path by the sensitive-position detector. During 2012 the experimental apparatus has been commissioned with antiprotons and positrons. Since the AD will not be running during 2013,during the refurbishment of the CERN accelerators, the experiment is currently working with positrons, electrons and protons, in order to prepare the way for the antihydrogen production in late 2014.