Can we use matter/antimatter as a source of energy?

Question: Can we use matter/antimatter as a source of energy?
- Keywords:
  anti,
  antimatter,
  energy,
  matter,
  source
Asked by lwebb to Adam, Geoff, Rob, Sheila, Suzie on 18 Mar 2011 in Categories: General.
- Suzie Sheehy answered on 16 Mar 2011:
  
  Great question, thanks!
  The problem at the moment with using antimatter/matter annihilation (which gives off lots of radiation) as an energy source, is that it takes more energy to make the antimatter than you’d get out of the collision! From Einstein’s E=MC^2 we know that we can get enough energy out of a gram of matter to drive a car around the Earth 700 times, so it looks pretty attractive. But CERN have been making antimatter for many years and still haven’t even made a gram! In fact, with their current machines it would take them 100 billions years to make that much!
  So unless we come across a store of antimatter somewhere unfortunately I don’t see this happening any time soon! (Finding a bit store of antimatter is pretty improbable, and certainly isn’t on Earth or it would have annihilated already)
  I hope that answers your question!!
  Feel free to ask more..
- Adam Tuff answered on 16 Mar 2011:
  
  You can certainly get energy from allowing matter and antimatter to annialate with each other! The problem is creating the antimatter, which is not very common in our universe as most things are matter – you would need to find a source that created antimatter (it would “cost” more energy to create it ourselves!). Another big problem would be storing it – you couldn’t keep it in say a container made of matter, as it would it would react with the box! You could theoretically contain it in a magnetic field in magnetic confinement! Awesome question! 🙂
- Robert Simpson answered on 16 Mar 2011:
  
  At the moment we can’t produce antimatter in the right way, or contain the reaction when it occurs. If you can find a natural source of antimatter in the universe then maybe this would be possible, as it is in Star Trek. We may need to figure out what dilithium crystals are for…
- Sheila Kanani answered on 18 Mar 2011:
  
  Ooo I like the idea of that….because antimatter colliding with matter certainly gives off a lot of energy. I think our problem at the mo is that we can’t really make or find antimatter very easily so it would be a great, but not very constant, source of energy.