Large Hadron Collider (LHC)

Large Hadron Collider (LHC)

 

 

Large Hadron Collider (English LHC, Large Hadron Collider), being built at present at the European Center for Nuclear Research CERN (Centre Europeen de Recherche Nucleaire) efforts of physicists around the world, is an accelerator designed to accelerate protons and heavy ions. The purpose of the LHC project is primarily the discovery of the Higgs boson - the most important of the experimentally found particles of the Standard Model (SM) - as well as search for phenomena physics beyond SM. Also, attention will be paid to study the properties of W and Z-boson nucleus interactions at ultrahigh energies, the processes of production and decays of heavy quarks (b and t).

Construction History

The idea of the LHC project was born in 1984 and was formally approved by ten years later. Construction of LHC started in 2001 after the end of the previous big accelerator CERN - the electron-positron collider LEP (Large Electron-Positron Collider).

At the LHC is expected to push the protons to the total energy of 14 TeV (or 14 teraelectronvolts or 14.1012 eV) in the center of mass of the incident particles, as well as lead nucleus with energy 5.5 GeV (ie, 5.5 × 109 eV) at each pair of colliding nucleons.

Large Hadron Collider being built in an existing tunnel, which was formerly occupied the LEP. Tunnel with a circumference 26.7 km laid at a depth of about one hundred meters in France and Switzerland. To retain and correction of proton beams used in 1624 superconducting magnets, the total length of more than 22 km. The last of them was installed in the tunnel on Nov. 27, 2006. The magnets will operate at a temperature of -271 ° C. Construction of a special line for cryogenic cooling of the magnets is completed on Nov. 19, 2006.

The first test of collision energy of 900 GeV (the so-called Commission Run) to be held in summer 2008. Note that the energy of the colliding beams during the Commission Run will be two times lower than the energy in the center of mass of the collider Tevatron. In late 2008, will yield the energy of 7 TeV, and then - to achieve the design energy of 14 TeV.

After starting the LHC will be the most high-energy particle accelerator in the world, almost ten times greater than the energy of its nearest competitor - a proton-antiproton collider Tevatron, which is currently working at the National Accelerator Laboratory. E. Fermi (USA) and the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider RHIC, working at the Brookhaven Laboratory (USA).

Specifications

Luminosity of the LHC during the Commission Run will be only 1,029 particles / cm ² · with. This is a very modest value. However, after the LHC start for experimental studies of the luminosity will gradually increase from the initial 5.1032 particles / cm ² · with up to a nominal 1.7 · 1034 particles / cm ² · with that order of magnitude as the luminosities of the modern B-factories BaBar (SLAC, USA ) and Belle (KEK, Japan). The yield on the nominal luminosity is expected in 2010.

It is planned that the LHC will operate four detectors: ATLAS (A Toroidal LHC ApparatuS), CMS (Compact Muon Solenoid), LHCb (The Large Hadron Collider beauty experiment) and ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment). The ATLAS and CMS are designed to search for the Higgs boson and "non-standard physics". LHCb detector is optimized for the study of physics b-quarks, and the ALICE detector to search for the quark-gluon plasma or quark-gluon liquid in the collisions of lead ions.

Russia actively participates in construction LHC, and in the creation of all four detectors, which should work on the LHC.

Distributed Computing

For managing, storing and processing data that will accrue from the LHC accelerator and detectors to create a distributed computer network LCG (LHC Computing GRID), which uses GRID technology. For certain computing tasks will involve a distributed computing project LHC @ Home.

Fears of uncontrolled physical processes at the LHC

Some experts and community representatives are concerned that there is a nonzero probability of escape conducted in the collider experiments from the control and the development of a chain reactionThat under certain conditions could theoretically destroy the entire planet. Point of view, supporters of catastrophic scenarios associated with the work of LHC, presented on the website . Because of the availability of such sentiment for the LHC project sometimes stands for Last Hadron Collider (last Hadron Collider).

In this regard, the most frequently mentioned the theoretical possibility of a microscopic black holes the collider , as well as the theoretical possibility of clot formation of antimatter and magnetic monopoles with the subsequent chain reaction capturing surrounding matter.

These theoretical possibilities have been considered a special group of CERN, to prepare a report, in which all these fears to be unfounded .

The main arguments in favor of unsubstantiated catastrophic scenarios are references to the fact that the Earth, Moon and other planets are constantly bombarded by the flux of cosmic particles with much higher energies. It also mentions the successful work previously put into operation of accelerators, including the Relativistic Ion Collider at Brookhaven. Possibility of the formation of microscopic black holes is not denied by experts CERN, but it is claimed that such facilities can not occur at energies of the LHC collider in our four-dimensional space, as this would require greater energy to 16 orders of magnitude compared with the energy LHC beams. Hypothetical microscopic black holes may appear in the LHC experiments in the predictions of theories with extra spatial dimensions. Such theories do not yet have any experimental evidence. However, even if the black holes will occur in the collision of particles at the LHC will be extremely unstable due to Hawking radiation and will evaporate almost instantly in the form of ordinary particles.

 

Large Hadron Collider could destroy the Earth

It's more like a screen saver to another type of computer game "Half Life" - but it's true! In the European Organization for Nuclear Research CERN (CERN, Centre Europeen de Recherche Nucleaire) efforts of physicists around the world built the most powerful of the currently existing accelerators.

It is called appropriately - the Large Hadron Collider, or LHC simply. BAC is located on the border of France and Switzerland, at the foot of the Jura mountains in the secure underground mine at a depth of about one hundred meters. Perimeter of his is about 27 kilometers, and the construction itself - a chain of accelerators, the oldest of which was built about 50 years ago.

 In the construction of participating member states of CERN (20 European countries) and Russia, which has observer status in the organization.

Why does he need? Fully understand it now only able nuclear physicists with experience. The experiments that are going to spend in the LHC, designed to artificially recreate the phenomena, which so far only predicted by various theories, with more or less likely.

 From a relatively digestible goals - searching suspected but has not found additional differences between matter and antimatter (for this purpose in the collider will smash particles containing b-quarks (they are the same - pretty quarks, beauty quarks). Descriptions of other planned experiments do not sound less entertaining. The essence of most of them - a huge concentration of energy at the minimum site area.

And here comes the fun part - one of the upcoming experiments will test the theory that when teraelektronnovoltnyh energies and in the corresponding gravity leads to the formation of black holes. Scientists say a microscopic black holes, with a period of life in a split second, but the possibility of clot formation of antimatter with subsequent chain reaction capturing surrounding matter, even they do not exclude. The consequence of this could be the formation of a black hole the size of a pair of galaxies, and life span of billions of Earth years!

The controversy between supporters and opponents of the experiment has been going on for years. But those and other arguments, as have a theory, not yet proven practices. If you remove the scientific dialect, opponents refer to the giant black holes in space, and supporters - that the Earth-de is still there, no matter what.

Therefore, knowing the history and curiosity of mankind, we can already say that the experiment - to be. The only question in the amount of preparatory work. And how it will end - soon find out. The first launch of the Large Hadron Collider is scheduled for May 2008.

Large Hadron Collider is ready to run

Below are pictures of the new super-powerful particle accelerator, officially called the Large Hadron Collider (LHC, Large Hadron Collider). Scientists plan to recreate the conditions of a new accelerator, "the young universe," immediately after "big bang" that will slightly open another door to understanding the structure of the world. However, the LHC became famous for another reason.

In the media, including in the scientific community that actively discusses the possible threats, which carries the collider. In theory, the particle pushing ultra-high energies is quite possible to create a small "black hole". Many scientists even hope for it, according to some estimates running the collider will generate microscopic black hole every second, but the life expectancy of these facilities will not exceed 10-17 seconds. The only question is what would happen if the black hole would still be able to generate.

According to the existing scientific theories, black holes have a finite lifespan, they say that they evaporate. It seems as if a new collider, and there will be such a tiny black hole, it will last for a split second and disappears without a trace of not having time to make mischief (leaving a particular track on which scientists can determine that it was just a black hole). However, it should be noted that a number of eminent scientists, including Sakharov, defended the opposite point of view that emerged once the black hole can not disappear will never. Then even the appearance of a microscopic black hole leads to a rapid collapse of the not only the Earth but the entire solar system, as would be fantastic as it sounds. It is pertinent to recall that in preparing its first nuclear explosion, some scientists believed that this could lead to a complete burnout of all the Earth's atmosphere. And although they are, fortunately, turned out to be wrong, but at the moment no mathematical calculations, showing the dangers of the experiment is not delayed explosion - from the views of the pessimists simply shrugged.

The heart of the collider - a huge underground hall where the detector is built of elementary particles. Similarity with Stargate "is not coincidental - the particles are encountered in cosmic speeds. Whatever happened during the experiment - it will happen here.

The Collider is a 27 kilometer tunnel, dig at a depth of 100 meters. It is situated between Switzerland and France.

Along the tunnel powerful electromagnets cooled by liquid nitrogen, dispersed particles to energies of 14 TeV (or 14 or teraelectronvolts 14x1012 eV), then to push them to the target in the detection chamber.

For managing and processing the experimental results will be used worldwide, distributed network of computers LCG (LHC Computing GRID).

The Large Hadron LHC is officially opened on October 21st

Large Hadron Collider (LHC) - the most powerful in the history of particle accelerator - will be officially opened on October 21, to this day, as expected, by and large ring of the accelerator will host the first beam of protons, Told RIA Novosti head of the department of heavy ion physics at the LHC of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Alexander Vodopyanov.

In connection with the future of the beginning of the accelerator sounds a lot of catastrophic predictions. In particular, says that while working collider supposedly a black hole which will swallow the Earth. Scientists assure, that the experiment is safe.

"On Oct. 21 inauguration of the collider was appointed, and it means that until then miss the beam (protons) across the entire ring," - said Vodopyanov, who is the coordinator of experiments at a collider facilities, designated ALICE.

Large Hadron Collider is created by scientists from many countries, including Russia. It is designed for the collision of beams of protons at nearly the speed of light with total energy 14 teraelectronvolts, which greatly exceeds the energy of existing accelerators.

 

 

 

Named a new date when the Large Hadron Collider / / for 40 days before the initial term

07.08.2008

European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) near Geneva, has officially announced that the first attempt to run an ion beam in the Large Hadron Collider along the entire length of the ring will be made on September 10. This event will be a live show contest. According to previous reports, October 21, six weeks after starting to take place the official inauguration of the accelerator, which invited politicians and officials from the science. / / "Herald"

Tests of LHC: a trial "doomsday" failed

One of the most discussed topics in the scientific world this summer was a whole set of assumptions, facts, versions, and assumptions associated with the launch of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) - the most powerful in the history of particle accelerator. The skeptics and pessimists with certainty that a LHC tool "Apocalypse", because immediately after its launch (the script want to see the end of the world), the collider will have to contribute to the formation of a black hole which will destroy the entire planet.

Nevertheless, recently conducted a test of the Large Hadron Collider to anything this has not led. At the weekend, scientists of the European Centre for Nuclear Research (CERN) have carried out a series of tests, in order to verify synchronization of the collider and the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) - a preliminary particle accelerator. At this time the proton beam close to the speed of light, was injected into one of eight sectors (octants) collider.

Recall that the first launch of the Large Hadron Collider scheduled for 10 September this year. To technical and other reasons, the date is not just tolerated. At this time the bunch will have to go around the contour of the collider.

For reference, the construction of the Large Hadron Collider started 7 years ago. With it, scientists are planning to get answers to many questions. One of the most important and significant tasks - getting information about the so-called Higgs boson, predicted by British physicist Peter Higgs in the second half of the twentieth century.

One of the most discussed topics in the scientific world this summer was a whole set of assumptions, facts, versions, and assumptions associated with the launch of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) - the most powerful in the history of particle accelerator. The skeptics and pessimists with certainty that a LHC tool "Apocalypse", because immediately after its launch (the script want to see the end of the world), the collider will have to contribute to the formation of a black hole which will destroy the entire planet.

 

Nevertheless, recently conducted a test of the Large Hadron Collider to anything this has not led. At the weekend, scientists of the European Centre for Nuclear Research (CERN) have carried out a series of tests, in order to verify synchronization of the collider and the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) - a preliminary particle accelerator. At this time the proton beam close to the speed of light, was injected into one of eight sectors (octants) collider.

Recall that the first launch of the Large Hadron Collider scheduled for 10 September this year. To technical and other reasons, the date is not just tolerated. At this time the bunch will have to go around the contour of the collider.

For reference, the construction of the Large Hadron Collider started 7 years ago. With it, scientists are planning to get answers to many questions. One of the most important and significant tasks - getting information about the so-called Higgs boson, predicted by British physicist Peter Higgs in the second half of the twentieth century.

Rumors and the truth about a mysterious scientific experiment / Large Hadron Collider

A week ago in Swiss vaults running the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). It is hard to remember when was the last time on scientific experiments in all the world media was said with such selflessness. Correlation about the launch of LHC is far eclipsed by other news - the decline of stock exchanges, political infighting, the glamorous life of the demi-monde. Given that few of the 6 billion people of planet Earth knows what's going on in the belly of a huge and mysterious collider it without apparent effort, and the acceleration has become a world record for number of controversial conjectures and suppositions fantastic truly universal scope - from the end of the world, The emergence of many-headed mutant to create an unknown superweapon. "News" could not resist the temptation to plunge into the sea of these hypotheses.

Collider has become so popular that it immediately spawned a new series of jokes: "We have a tradition of physicists - once in 14 billion years to assemble, and to run the collider". The etymology of the term "Large Hadron Collider. The first word is clear to all. The latter - many, comes from the English collide (face). The key term is derived from the class of elementary particles of hadrons, which include the most severe and well-known even schoolchildren protons and neutrons. "Hadrons" - from the Greek "strong, strong". Italian singer Adriano Celentano in some way can be regarded as a relative of the Large Hadron Collider. From our - Andron Konchalovsky and Andrei Fursenko. This, of course, a joke, but all of the following - in complete seriousness.