Detailed explanation of accelerator principles

An accelerator is a physical device used to change the velocity, mass, or direction of particles, which accelerates charged particles to extremely high energy through the acceleration effect of an electromagnetic field. The invention and application of this technology not only greatly promoted the development of physics, materials science, medicine and other fields, but also provided powerful tools for us to explore the mysteries of the universe. This article will explore in detail the principle, classification, application, and future development of accelerators.




1、 The basic principles of accelerators

The core principle of an accelerator is based on the effect of electromagnetic force on charged particles in an electric field to achieve acceleration. Electric fields can exist in three different forms: electrostatic fields, magnetically induced fields, and alternating electromagnetic fields. Accelerators are based on these three forms of electric fields to accelerate charged particles.

Electrostatic accelerator

Electrostatic accelerator is the simplest type of accelerator that utilizes a high-voltage electric field to accelerate charged particles. In an electrostatic accelerator, particles are confined within a vacuum tube, and charged particles are accelerated through the action of a high-voltage electric field. When particles are negatively charged, they are attracted to the anode and accelerated; When particles are positively charged, they are repelled to the cathode and accelerated. Although electrostatic accelerators have a simple structure, their acceleration energy is limited due to high voltage limitations.



Magnetic confinement accelerator

Magnetic confinement accelerators (such as synchronous accelerators) use a magnetic field to bind and accelerate charged particles. In this type of accelerator, particles are placed in a strong magnetic field, and their velocity and direction are changed by changing the strength of the magnetic field. Particles move along specific orbits in a magnetic field and gain energy each time they pass through an acceleration region until they reach the desired energy level.
Linear accelerator

Linear accelerator (LINAC) accelerates charged particles by gradually increasing the electric field. The particles are placed in a gradually increasing electric field on a straight track, and as the electric field increases, the particle velocity gradually increases. However, due to the limitation of electric field strength, linear accelerators can usually only accelerate particles to relatively low energies.

Cyclic strong focusing accelerator

Cyclic strong focusing accelerators (such as proton accelerators) use a magnetic field to focus and accelerate charged particles. In this accelerator, particles are placed in a circular structure composed of multiple magnetic field regions. By changing the magnetic field intensity, particles are accelerated and bent within the ring, thereby achieving the required energy and direction. The cyclic strong focusing accelerator can generate extremely high energy and is an important tool for particle physics research.

Heavy ion accelerator

Heavy ion accelerators are specifically designed to accelerate heavy ions such as hydrogen, helium, lithium, etc. Its working principle is similar to that of a synchronous accelerator, but it uses a stronger magnetic field to bind and accelerate heavier ions. Heavy ion accelerators have extensive applications in material science research and medical fields.

2、 Classification of accelerators

Accelerators can be classified into various types according to different standards, and the following are some common classification methods:

Classification by accelerated particle type

Electron accelerator: an accelerator specifically designed to accelerate electrons.

Proton accelerator: an accelerator used to accelerate protons, such as synchrotron and proton linear accelerator.

Heavy ion accelerator: an accelerator used to accelerate heavy ions, similar to a step heavy ion accelerator.

Classification by accelerated particle energy

Low energy accelerator: an accelerator that accelerates particles with energy below 100 MeV.

Medium energy accelerator: an accelerator that accelerates particle energy between 100MeV and 1GeV.

High energy accelerators: Accelerators that accelerate particle energy above 1GeV, including ultra-high energy accelerators (energy above 100GeV).

Classification by beam intensity

High current accelerator: an accelerator with a beam intensity of over 1mA.

Medium current accelerator: an accelerator with a beam intensity between 10 μ A and 1mA.

Weak current accelerator: an accelerator with a beam intensity below 10 μ A.

Classification by type of acceleration electric field

High voltage accelerator: An accelerator that utilizes a high voltage electric field for acceleration, such as an electrostatic accelerator.

Electromagnetic induction accelerator: an accelerator that uses the principle of electromagnetic induction to accelerate, such as a cyclotron.

High frequency resonant accelerator: an accelerator that utilizes a high-frequency resonant electric field for acceleration, such as a linear accelerator.

3、 The application of accelerators

Accelerators have extensive applications in various fields such as scientific research, industry, and medicine. The following are some of the main application areas:


Physics research

Accelerators play a crucial role in physics research. They can accelerate charged particles to speeds close to the speed of light, simulating the behavior of matter under extreme conditions in the laboratory. Scientists can use this technology to conduct a series of experiments to study the basic composition and properties of substances. For example, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) successfully accelerated and collided two proton beams, discovering the Higgs boson, which had a huge impact on driving the development of physics.

material science 

In the field of materials science, accelerators can be used to manufacture and improve materials. By shining charged particles onto a material, its properties can be altered, making it more durable or possessing special properties. For example, using accelerator irradiation can change the crystal structure of materials, improve their hardness and wear resistance; It can also be used for surface modification of materials to improve their corrosion resistance and fatigue resistance.