We’ve talked about
particles, charged
particles...so what could
we learn about…
Particle accelerators?
Placemat
You have 3 minutes to write down as
much as you can. What could we learn
about particle accelerators? What do
you want to know?
You will now take it
in turns to discuss
your thoughts.
Once you
have
reached
agreement,
write the
two
questions in
the centre
Discuss,
explaining
your
reasoning
Your goal is to agree on the two
questions you think it is most
important to explore in this
section. You must all be able to
explain the group’s reasoning.
As we progress
through the unit,
note down
questions that you
would ask a
particle physicist if
you met one.
Image courtesy of CERN
The Large Hadron Collider
How much?!!!?!?!?!?!?!?!
£2.6 billion pounds
That’s £2.1 billion for the collider
and £575 million for the detectors.
But let’s get a handle on that number.
The cost is shared by the 20
member states of Conseil
Européen pour la Recherche
Nucléaire (CERN).
The UK’s direct contribution to the
LHC is £34 million per year
(that’s 55p per person in the UK).
The UK pays £70 milliom per year
as an annual subscription to
CERN.
Compare that with…
£431 million
Compare that with…
£850 billion
Compare that with…
£692 million
Compare that with…
£95.6 million
Compare that with…
£365 million
Still not convinced?
 What
is this story?

One is the will to show that after the devastation
caused by the world’s first atomic bomb in 1945,
physics research could be used to do something
for peace.

It is a story, in the planning and throughout its 56year history, of pushing technology and human
ingenuity to the limits.
 What

is this story?
A story of the power of science to overcome
physical, political and religious boundaries.
 What
is this story?

A story of that tells us that science is alive. And it
matters.

And that all that is needed for creative thinking is
freedom.
 At
the moment of impact of the particles, a
previously unachievable temperature is
reached.
 Protons (hadrons) are approaching the speed
of light.
 Particles are released that have not existed
in a free state since the Big Bang.
 Of
all of the information generated, anywhere
in the world, in any format, 1% of it comes
from the LHC.
 In 2004, this required 30,000–40,000 of the
high spec PCs at CERN itself, plus 10–12
major centres around the world and 50–60
smaller centres. Now you perhaps understand
why they needed to invent the world wide
web!
 The
simplest type of particle accelerator forms
the basis of traditional CRT television and
computer monitor technology.
 The
cathode-ray tube we have used in the lab
is a particle accelerator. On a much smaller
scale than CERN of course!
A
particle accelerator is designed 'to speed up
and increase the energy of a beam of
particles by generating electric fields that
accelerate the particles, and magnetic fields
that steer and focus them.'
 'Accelerators
were invented to provide
energetic particles to investigate the structure
of the atomic nucleus.'
Explanations courtesy of CERN.
http://public.web.cern.ch/public/en/research/Accelerator-en.html
Read and discuss the History Highlights
from
http://public.web.cern.ch/public/en/about/
History54-en.html
Put together a glossary of scientific terms
and their meanings – include a reference
for each one.
Image courtesy of CERN
http://microcosm.web.cern.ch/microcosm/LHCGame/LHCGame.html
Can you persuade the governments of
the world to fund your new accelerator?
You must submit a bid (in electronic
form) that is thoroughly researched,
investigated and costed.
Image courtesy of CERN
an electronic presentation, fully
referenced. Consider the use of images
and multimedia (eg video files) to
support your case.
Image courtesy of CERN
Include a scientific explanation, with
clear diagrams, of the operation of your
accelerator.
Include details of each of the basic parts
of an accelerator and what it does.
Explain the physics!
Image courtesy of CERN
Include a case for support, including the
purpose and benefits of the particle
accelerator, and historical information.
eg a similar accelerator which cost £x in 19xx operated successfully for
25 years.
Image courtesy of CERN
 Quality
information, referenced and crosreferenced.
 Scientific
explanations of the operation of
particle accelerators.
 Numbers!
Lengths, strengths and
comparisons to allow us to get a handle on
the numbers.
 Understanding
the basics of the operation of
particle accelerators.

Group A: A synchrotron for medical applications

Group B: A cyclotron for cancer treatment (proton therapy)
and PET imaging

Group C: A linear accelerator (LINAC)

Group D: A cyclotron for nuclear physics research

Group E: A synchrotron for life science and materials
research applications
 CERN
is a high-quality, cutting-edge source of
information. The website includes simulations,
videos and lots of other resources
 The UK’s Diamond Light Source particle
accelerator http://insidediamond.org also has high-quality
information on its general website and in the
education section.
 Stanford University (home of the SLAC) has a
virtual visitor centre http://www2.slac.stanford.edu/vvc/
 Fermilab – anatomy of a detector and much
more! (fermilab)
 Are
there questions to which you just cannot
find the answer?
 Would
you like some help from a particle
physicist?
 Write
your questions in your jotter.
Image courtesy of CERN
The Large Hadron Collider
http://lhc-milestones.web.cern.ch/LHC-Milestones/Flash/LHCMilestones-en.html
http://eucard.web.cern.ch/EuCARD/news/newsletters/issue06/article2.html