Antihydrogen atoms were trapped in a magnetic field . The magnet was strong enough to hold the antiprotons together, but not so strong that they would fly apart when hit by an electron beam or other particle ( like electrons ). Antimatter was first predicted in 1931 by the British physicist Paul Dirac , who theorized that antimatter is ordinary matter in reverse . `` It 's taken us five years to get here , '' says Professor Jeffrey Hangst . CERN 's next ambition is to create a beam of antimatter .
Antihydrogen atoms were trapped in a magnetic field . The magnet was strong enough to hold the antiprotons together, but not so strong that they would fly apart when hit by an electron beam or other particle ( like electrons ). `` It 's taken us five years to get here , '' says Professor Jeffrey Hangst . CERN 's next ambition is to create a beam of antimatter .