Frank Close explores the strange mirror world of antimatter, revealing that reality is even more fascinating than the sci-fi stories suggest. Explaining the science behind one of physics' most extraordinary discoveries, he shows how, through understanding antimatter, we can shed light on some of the deepest mysteries of the universe.

• Foreword: 'Genesis'


• 1: Antimatter: Fact or Fiction?


• 2: The Material World


• 3: Tablets of Stone


• 4: A Cosmic Discovery


• 5: Annihilation


• 6: Storing Antimatter


• 7: The Mirror Universe


• 8: Why is There Anything at All?


• 9: Revelations


• Appendix: The Cost of Antimatter


• Appendix: 'The Dirac Code'


• Notes


• Bibliography


• Index

Frank Close is an eminent research theoretical physicist in nuclear and particle physics. Currently Emeritus Professor of Physics at Oxford University and a Fellow of Exeter College, he was formerly the Head of the Theoretical Physics Division at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. He served as Chair of the UK Space Exploration Working Group 2007 which culminated with Tim Peake's launch to the ISS. He is the author of several books, including the best-selling Lucifer's Legacy (OUP, 2000), and was the winner of the Kelvin Medal of the Institute of Physics for his 'outstanding contributions to the public understanding of physics'. His other books include Neutrino (OUP, 2011), Eclipse: Journeys to the Dark Side of the Moon (OUP, 2017), and OUP Very Short Introductions to Nuclear Physics (2015), Particle Physics (2004), and Nothing (2009) In 2013, Professor Close was awarded the Royal Society Michael Faraday Prize for communicating science.