accelerator science

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The future of particle accelerators may be autonomous

Particle accelerators are some of the most complicated machines in science. In today’s more autonomous era of self-driving cars and vacuuming robots, efforts are going strong to automate different aspects of the operation of accelerators, and the next generation of particle accelerators promises to be more automated than ever. Scientists are working on ways to run them with a diminishing amount of direction from humans.

Recycler

An interaction of slipping beams

In particle accelerators, the greater a beam’s intensity, the more opportunities there are to study particle interactions. One way to increase the intensity is to merge two beams with a technique called slip-stacking. However, when combining them, the beams’ interaction may cause instability. A Fermilab scientist has created a successful model of the fraught dynamics of two particle beams in close contact, leading to smoother sailing in this area of particle acceleration.

First beam at IOTA for accelerator research

    From CERN Courier, Oct. 29, 2018: In late August, a beam of electrons successfully circulated for the first time through a new particle accelerator at Fermilab. The Integrable Optics Test Accelerator, a 40-meter-circumference storage ring, is one of only a handful of facilities worldwide dedicated to beam-physics studies.