Scientists Accidentally Turn Lead Into Gold At The Large Hadron Collider

For a long time, alchemists hoped to turn lead into gold. Now, thanks to a major scientific discovery at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), researchers have managed to do this—not with magic, but with advanced particle physics.

At the LHC, lead ions are sped up to almost the speed of light. While most experiments focus on head-on collisions, this discovery emerged from “near misses,” where particles pass close enough to generate powerful electromagnetic fields without directly colliding. Such short-lived interactions cause powerful photon pulses that can start nuclear reactions.

Electromagnetic dissociation is a process where photons interact with atomic nuclei, shaking them and making subatomic particles leave the nucleus. When three protons are lost from a lead atom, it becomes gold.

“The electromagnetic field of a lead nucleus is extraordinarily strong due to its 82 protons,” CERN officials explained. When near-light-speed travel is added, it causes the electromagnetic pulse to become flat, which leads to these unusual transmutations.

The process was detected by researchers from ALICE using the zero-degree calorimeter (ZDC). The researchers found that gold was not the only product; thallium, mercury, and altered lead atoms were also created by these interactions. During Run 2 of the LHC (2015–2018), scientists produced an estimated 86 billion gold nuclei.

However, this modern alchemy won’t make anyone rich. The total mass of gold produced equals just 29 picograms, and the atoms decay almost instantly upon contact with the collider’s infrastructure.

Even though they are short-lived, these gold atoms play a role in advancing nuclear physics. “The results test and improve theoretical models of electromagnetic dissociation,” said ALICE collaborator John Jowett, “which are vital for predicting beam losses and enhancing collider performance.” Alchemy did not succeed in the past, but science is making fiction into temporary fact.