How Do Particle Accelerators Work? Principles and Real-World Applications
A particle accelerator is a machine that propels charged particles to very high speed and energies by using electromagnetic fields. And contains them in well-defined beams. In the research of particle Physics, large accelerators are used. Large hadron collider is the largest operator currently operating in basic research work, it is near Geneva, Switzerland. It can accelerate two beams of protons to an energy of 6.5 TeV and it makes them collide in such a manner that it creates center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. Some other powerful accelerators are listed here: SuperKEKB in Japan, Tevatron at Fermilab.
For the study of considered matter in physics, synchrotron light source accelerators are used. There are a wide variety of applications in which they are used that are particle therapy for oncological purposes, for medical diagnosis- production of radioisotope, measurements of the rare isotope such as radiocarbon- accelerator mass spectrometer. In operation around the world currently, there are more than 30,000 accelerators.
Electrostatic and electrodynamic or electromagnetic are two basic classes of accelerators. Electrostatic accelerators are used in accelerating particles in static electric fields. On the other hand, the electrodynamic or electromagnetic accelerators use charging electromagnetic fields.
Types of Particle Accelerator
Particle accelerators are split into two types, oscillating field accelerators, and electrostatic accelerators. Electrostatic accelerators e.g. Cocacroft-Walton and Van de Graaff accelerators make use of electrostatic fields. Electrostatic fields do not change with time. The only disadvantage of using an electrostatic field is it needs a generation of large amounts of electric fields to accelerate particles. This disadvantage gave birth to another type of accelerator- the oscillating field accelerator. This type of oscillator needs an electric field to work that periodically changes with time. The use of an oscillating electric field allows high energy physicians to accelerate particles to high energies leading to many key discoveries.
The Van-de-Graaff and Cocacroft-Walton Accelerators:
These are two types of particle accelerators developed in the 1930s, the Cocacroft-Walton accelerator wad developed by John Cocacroft and Emest Walton at Cambridge, England and the Van-de-Graaff was developed by Robert van-de-Graaff while working as a postdoctoral researcher assistant in the U.S.A. Cocacroft and walton generated a voltage of 800,000 volts. The proton was then accelerated along an 8-foot vacuum tube, where they collided with the lithium target achieving first nuclear disintegration.
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Uses of Particle Accelerator
Physicists like playing and that ok if the toys they like were not useless. This is what, when people hear of the particle accelerators. Scientists are aware of hard work and feelings to raise awareness about the use of particle accelerators in daily life. From industry to energy supply and from health to security there are many fields beyond pure research in which accelerator related technology impacts everyone’s life in a positive manner. Particle accelerators are designed in such a manner so that they can propel particles through electromagnetic fields, and pack them into a beam. They have been built for science the first decade and can be circular, linear, or even small enough to hold on hands or at times too big or giant. There are thousands of particle accelerators all over the world, which allows scientists to learn about the building block of the matter.
The outcome of a particle accelerator is not just till that, there are many positive applications of particle accelerators. In medicine, the particles which are accelerated are used for treating cancer and killing its cells. Accelerators are also used in scanning inside containers and help in identifying dangerous weapons. They are used in many more things like in treating wastewaters, the creation of new materials, sterilization of medical equipment, and pollution monitoring.
Applications of Particle Accelerator
There are few researched applications of a particle accelerator in practical physics: The development of particle physics has directly been determined by the progress seen in building accelerators of increasing energies. Examples are the discovery of the antiproton, in the mid-fifties. The discovery of two neutrons in the early sixties. In about forty years the colliders and accelerators have allowed us to gain three orders of magnitude. HERA- a new facility for probing using electron hadron has been commissioned in Hamsbug.
Particle Accelerators Use in Nuclear Physics:
They are the essential tools through which physics has discovered the nucleus determined it’s structure and individual nuclei. It depends upon the property of the interest that one is using electrons, protons, and heavy electric beams. The increase in intensity and energy is also opening new opportunities. Early nuclear physics was devoted to studying the structures of individual nuclei, their associated states, and excited states.
Cosmology and Astrophysics: these are now becoming more complimentary for telescopes, our universe originated in a hot big bang, the increasing energy of colliders and accelerators, with decreasing temperature allows the physicists to study the process closely about the origin of the universe.
FAQs on Particle Accelerator: Working, Types & Applications
1. What is a particle accelerator and what is its fundamental principle?
A particle accelerator is a machine that uses electromagnetic fields to propel charged particles, such as electrons or protons, to very high speeds and energies. The fundamental principle involves using a powerful electric field to give the particles an initial push and then repeatedly applying electric fields to accelerate them further. For circular accelerators, strong magnetic fields are used to bend the particles' path, keeping them in a confined loop to be accelerated multiple times.
2. What are the main types of particle accelerators a student should know?
There are two primary categories of particle accelerators, each with a different design and purpose:
Linear Accelerators (LINACs): These machines accelerate particles in a straight line through a series of tubes. The particles gain energy each time they pass from one segment to the next.
Circular Accelerators: These use magnetic fields to bend the particle's path into a circle or spiral. This allows the particles to pass through the accelerating electric field multiple times, achieving much higher energies in a more compact space. Common examples include the Cyclotron and the Synchrotron.
3. How does a Cyclotron work to accelerate particles?
A cyclotron uses a combination of electric and magnetic fields. A charged particle is injected into the center of two D-shaped, hollow metal electrodes called 'dees'. A strong, uniform magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the dees, forcing the particle to move in a semi-circular path. An alternating electric field is applied across the gap between the dees. Each time the particle crosses this gap, the electric field accelerates it, increasing its speed and the radius of its path. This creates a spiral trajectory until the particle reaches the desired energy and exits the cyclotron.
4. What are some important real-world applications of particle accelerators?
Particle accelerators are crucial in many fields beyond fundamental physics research. Key applications include:
Medical Field: Used in cancer therapy (radiotherapy) to destroy tumour cells with high-energy beams and in producing radioactive isotopes for medical imaging (like PET scans).
Industrial Uses: Employed for sterilising medical equipment, irradiating food to kill microbes, and creating stronger materials through ion implantation.
Scientific Research: Essential for exploring the fundamental structure of matter, as done at facilities like the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).
5. Why can't a cyclotron be used to accelerate electrons to very high energies?
A cyclotron cannot accelerate electrons to very high energies due to the effects of special relativity. Electrons have a very small mass and approach the speed of light quickly. As their speed increases, their relativistic mass also increases significantly. This change in mass causes them to take longer to complete their path, making them fall out of sync with the fixed frequency of the accelerating electric field. As they are no longer accelerated at the right moment, they cannot gain further energy, placing a limit on the cyclotron's effectiveness for light particles like electrons.
6. What is the key difference between a linear accelerator (LINAC) and a circular accelerator like a cyclotron?
The key difference lies in the path of the particles and the method of acceleration. In a LINAC, particles travel in a straight line and are accelerated in a single pass through a long series of accelerating structures. In a circular accelerator, particles are forced into a circular or spiral path by magnets and pass through the same accelerating structures multiple times, allowing them to achieve very high energies within a much smaller physical footprint.
7. Can an old-style CRT television be considered a simple type of particle accelerator?
Yes, a Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) in an old television or monitor is an excellent example of a simple, small-scale electrostatic particle accelerator. It uses a high-voltage electric field to accelerate a beam of electrons from the back of the tube (the cathode) towards the screen. Magnetic fields are then used to steer this beam across the phosphor-coated screen to 'paint' an image. While its energy is much lower than a scientific accelerator, it operates on the same basic principles of accelerating charged particles.
8. What is the largest particle accelerator in the world and what is its purpose?
The largest and most powerful particle accelerator in the world is the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). It is located at CERN, near Geneva, on the border between Switzerland and France. The LHC is a synchrotron built in a circular tunnel 27 kilometres in circumference. Its main purpose is to collide beams of protons at extremely high energies to study the fundamental particles and forces of nature, famously leading to the discovery of the Higgs boson.
