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Particle accelerators
Intermediate
Linear and circular machines reach high energies.
Linear accelerators and circular synchrotrons use electric fields to accelerate and magnetic fields to steer charged particles to high energy. Colliders give the maximum available energy.
SLAC 3 km linear accelerator; LHC 27 km ring.
Synchrotron radiation limits electron rings.
In more detail
Particle accelerators use electric and magnetic fields to speed particles to high energies, and then collide them to study their properties. Linear and circular designs are used.
Real-world uses
- The LHC is the most powerful accelerator, colliding protons at high energy.
- Medical accelerators treat cancer with high-energy beams.
- Medical centres use linear accelerators to produce X-rays and electron beams for cancer treatment.
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Frequently asked questions
Why are circular colliders used?
They reuse the same beam many times, reaching high collision rates.
Why do accelerators need vacuum?
To prevent particles from colliding with air molecules.
What is the difference between linear and circular accelerators?
Linear accelerators speed particles along a straight line, while circular ones use magnets to bend them round many times.
Related topics in Particle Physics & Cosmology
Electroweak unification · Conservation laws in particles · Feynman diagrams · Large Hadron Collider · Particle detectors · Neutrino oscillations