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axion

A Dictionary of Astronomy | 1997 | 471 words | Copyright

axion A hypothetical elementary particle which has been proposed as a candidate for dark matter in the Universe. Axions are expected to have been produced abundantly in the early phases of the hot Big Bang. Although the axion is predicted to have a very tiny mass (about 1011 of the mass of an electron) and might therefore be expected to be a form of hot dark matter, it interacts so weakly with radiation that it is, in fact, a plausible candidate for cold dark matter.

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