VietNamNet Bridge - The discovery of four new elements, the heaviest ones in the Mendeleev periodic table - 113, 115, 117 and 118 – is now a hot topic of discussion worldwide. This recalls the story about a Vietnamese scientist who discovered the negative sigma baryon antiparticle.


In the early 20th century, humans discovered the atom, the element believed to be the smallest of the chemical elements, with nucleus in the middle and electrons rotating around it. 

Tu began his research on elementary particles in August 1957, though he was trained to become a water resource engineer.

In mid-1930s, the discovery was that the nucleus was also a complicated structure comprising smaller particles called ‘elementary particles’.

In 1960, from Dubna Institute, scientists discovered an unheard-of phenomenon – the creation of ‘antiparticles of negative sigma baryon’ which is 2,340 times higher than the weight of an electron. It is positively charged can only exist for a very short time or one ten billionths of a second before it decays into other particles – positive pi-meson and anti-neutron. 

The discovery about the antiparticle was praised as the pinnacle of technology in 1950-1960s.

The discovery of a new particle, antiparticle of sigma baryon, once again reaffirmed the theory about antiparticles mentioned by the prominent scientist Dirac in 1928. 

The antiparticle of sigma baryon, together with the particles found before, gave one more proof to the existence of antimatter in the natural world or the vast universe.

At the age of 30, a Vietnamese scientist made a great contribution to the research to discover sigma baryons antiparticle. Nguyen Dinh Tu was then a scientist who represented the research team, and presented reports about the discovery at the International Scientific Conference Forum.

Tu was then recognized by JINR (Joint Institute of Nuclear Research) as making a great contribution to research on the multi-level Hyperon creation, the antiparticle of negative sigma hyperon.

For his achievements, in 1961, Professor Tu received an award from the Scientific Council of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research Dubna. The former Soviet Union government in 1968 granted a patent to the research work and the group of international scientists, including Nguyen Dinh Tu, a citizen of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.

In 2007, the government of Vietnam posthumously bestowed Tu with the Ho Chi Minh Award.

Tu began his research on elementary particles in August 1957, though he was trained to become a water resource engineer.

Tran Minh