The particles were placed in a magnetic field . The researchers created 38 antihydrogen atoms and held on to them for about a tenth of a second , which is long enough to study them says Professor Jeffrey Hangst , one of the team of CERN scientists who worked on the program . Matter and antimatter destroy each other on contact . ` ` It 's taken us five years to get here , '' says Professor Jeffrey Hangst . CERN 's next ambition is to create a beam of light .
The particles were placed in a magnetic field . Matter and antimatter destroy each other on contact . ` ` It 's taken us five years to get here , '' says Professor Jeffrey Hangst . CERN 's next ambition is to create a beam of light .