University of Copenhagen researchers have recreated primordial matter from shortly after the Big Bang by colliding smaller atomic nuclei than previously thought possible. Scientists at CERN’s ALICE collaboration smashed oxygen-16 and neon-20 nuclei together at near-light speeds, producing quark-gluon plasma—the extreme matter theorized to have existed in the Universe’s first microsecond.
Associate Professor You Zhou explained: “We have pushed the boundary for how small the atomic nuclei can be while still recreating this primordial matter.”
The collision patterns revealed that neon nuclei produce bowling-pin shapes, while oxygen creates rounder patterns. By observing resulting particle movements, researchers gained indirect insights into nuclear geometry—information typically difficult to obtain.
Postdoctoral Researcher Emil Gorm Dahlbæk Nielsen noted the shadow analogy: “It is a bit like shining light on an object and seeing its shadow.”
This work connects two major physics questions: understanding the strong fundamental force governing nuclear structure and comprehending the Universe’s earliest moments. The findings were published in Physical Review Letters as an Editors’ Suggestion, marking a potential paradigm shift in nuclear physics research.
Journal: Physical Review Letters
DOI: 10.1103/gymp-vp87
Article Publication Date: 17-Aug-2026
Source: University of Copenhagen