What is the Large Hadron Collider and what is it for? Why is LHC needed at all? What is the collider for?
Many have already, one way or another, heard the term “Large Hadron Collider”. Of these words, only the word “big” is familiar to the common man. But what is it really? And is it possible for a mere mortal to master this physical term?
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is a facility for physicists to experiment with elementary particles. According to the formulation, the LHC is an accelerator of charged particles using colliding beams, designed to accelerate heavy ions and protons and study collision products. In other words, scientists collide atoms and then see what comes out of it.
At this time, this is the largest experimental installation in the world. The size of this installation can be compared to a city with a diameter of almost 27 kilometers, which is located at a depth of one hundred meters. This installation is located near Geneva and cost $10 billion to build.
One of the main tasks of the LHC installation (according to scientists) is the search for the Higgs boson. Again, in simple words, this is an attempt to find the particle that is responsible for the presence of mass.
In parallel with this, search experiments are being conducted at the collider:
— particles outside the “Standard Model”,
— magnetic monopoles (particles with a magnetic field),
— also, the study of quantum gravity and the study of microscopic holes are underway.
These ones "microscopic black holes" and do not give many people peace. Moreover, not only those for whom acquaintance with physics ended at school are worried, but also those who continue to study it at a professional level.
What a black hole is is known to everyone, both from school and from science fiction stories and films. Many (including scientists) worry that such experiments, some of which are designed to try to recreate the “big bang” (after which, according to theory, the universe arose) will lead to the inevitable collapse of the entire planet.
Scientists reassure that there is no danger from these experiments. But there is one more fact that the luminaries of science never take into account. We are talking about weapons.
Every normal scientist, making a discovery or inventing something, does it for two purposes. The first goal is to help the world live better, and the second, less humane, but human, is to become famous.
But, for some reason, all inventions (without exaggeration) take their place in the creation of tools for killing the same humanity and famous scientists. Even discoveries that have become commonplace for us (radio, mechanical engines, satellite television, etc.), not to mention atomic energy, have firmly taken their place in the defense industry.
In 2016, in the Moscow region they plan to launch an installation similar to the European LHC. But the Russian installation, unlike its “big brother,” must actually recreate the “big bang” on a small scale.
And who will guarantee that neighboring Moscow (and with it the Earth) will not become the progenitor of a new “black hole” in the vast universe?
The news about the experiment being carried out in Europe shook public peace, rising to the top of the list of discussed topics. Hadron Collider appeared everywhere - on TV, in the press and on the Internet. What can we say if LJ users create separate communities where hundreds of caring people have already actively expressed their opinions about the new brainchild of science. "Delo" offers you 10 facts that you can't help but know about hadron collider.
A mysterious scientific phrase ceases to be such as soon as we understand the meaning of each of the words. Hadron– name of a class of elementary particles. Collider- a special accelerator with the help of which it is possible to transfer high energy to elementary particles of matter and, accelerating them to the highest speed, reproduce their collision with each other.
2. Why is everyone talking about him?
According to scientists at the European Center for Nuclear Research CERN, the experiment will make it possible to reproduce in miniature the explosion that resulted in the formation of the Universe billions of years ago. However, what the public is most concerned about is what the consequences of the mini-explosion will be for the planet if the experiment fails. According to some scientists, as a result of the collision of elementary particles flying at ultra-relativistic speeds in opposite directions, microscopic black holes will form and other dangerous particles will fly out. There is no particular point in relying on special radiation that leads to the evaporation of black holes - there is no experimental evidence that it works. That is why distrust arises in such scientific innovation, actively fueled by skeptical scientists.
3. How does this thing work?
Elementary particles are accelerated into different orbits in opposite directions, after which they are placed in one orbit. The value of the intricate device is that thanks to it, scientists have the opportunity to study the products of collisions of elementary particles, recorded by special detectors in the form of digital cameras with a resolution of 150 megapixels, capable of taking 600 million frames per second.
4. When did the idea to create a collider come about?
The idea to build the machine was born back in 1984, but construction of the tunnel began only in 2001. The accelerator is located in the same tunnel where the previous accelerator, the Large Electron-Positron Collider, was located. The 26.7-kilometer ring is laid at a depth of about one hundred meters underground in France and Switzerland. On September 10, the first beam of protons was launched at the accelerator. The second beam will be launched in the next few days.
5. How much did the construction cost?
Hundreds of scientists from all over the world, including Russian ones, participated in the development of the project. Its cost is estimated at 10 billion dollars, of which the United States invested 531 million in the construction of the hadron collider.
6. What contribution did Ukraine make to the creation of the accelerator?
Scientists from the Ukrainian Institute of Theoretical Physics took a direct part in the construction of the hadron collider. They developed an internal tracking system (ITS) specifically for research. She is the heart of "Alice" - part collider, where a miniature “big bang” should occur. Obviously, this is not the least important part of the car. Ukraine must pay 200 thousand hryvnia annually for the right to participate in the project. This is 500-1000 times less than contributions to the project from other countries.
7. When should we expect the end of the world?
The first experiment on the collision of beams of elementary particles is scheduled for October 21. Until this time, scientists plan to accelerate particles to speeds close to the speed of light. According to Einstein's general theory of relativity, black holes do not threaten us. However, if theories with additional spatial dimensions turn out to be correct, we do not have much time left to resolve all our issues on planet Earth.
8. Why are black holes scary?
Black hole- a region in space-time whose gravitational attraction is so strong that even objects moving at the speed of light cannot leave it. The existence of black holes is confirmed by solutions of Einstein's equations. Despite the fact that many already imagine how the black hole formed in Europe, growing, will swallow the entire planet, there is no need to sound the alarm. Black holes, which, according to some theories, may appear when working collider, according to the same theories, will exist for such a short period of time that they simply will not have time to begin the process of absorbing matter. According to some scientists, they will not even have time to reach the walls of the collider.
9. How can research be useful?
Besides the fact that these studies are another incredible achievement of science that will allow humanity to know the composition of elementary particles, this is not the whole gain for which humanity took such a risk. Perhaps in the near future you and I will be able to see dinosaurs with our own eyes and discuss the most effective military strategies with Napoleon. Russian scientists believe that as a result of the experiment, humanity will be able to create a time machine.
10. How to come across as scientifically savvy with the Hadron Collider?
And finally, if someone, armed with an answer in advance, asks you what a hadron collider is, we offer you a worthy answer that can pleasantly surprise anyone. So, fasten your seat belts! The Hadron Collider is a charged particle accelerator designed to accelerate protons and heavy ions in colliding beams. Built at the research center of the European Council for Nuclear Research, it is a 27-kilometer tunnel laid at a depth of 100 meters. Because protons are electrically charged, an ultrarelativistic proton produces a cloud of almost real photons flying close to the proton. This stream of photons becomes even stronger in the nuclear collision regime, due to the large electrical charge of the nucleus. They can collide either with an oncoming proton, generating typical photon-hadron collisions, or with each other. Scientists are afraid that as a result of the experiment, space-time “tunnels” may form in space, which are a typological feature of space-time. As a result of the experiment, the existence of supersymmetry can also be proven, which will thus become an indirect confirmation of the truth of superstring theory.
Date of publication: 09/17/2012What is the Large Hadron Collider? Why is it needed? Could it cause the end of the world? Let's break everything down into pieces.
What is BAK?
This is a huge ring-shaped tunnel, similar to a particle acceleration pipe. It is located at a depth of about 100 meters under the territory of France and Switzerland. Scientists from all over the world participated in its construction.
The LHC was built to find the Higgs boson, the mechanism that gives particles mass. A secondary goal is also to study quarks, the fundamental particles that make up hadrons (hence the name “hadron” collider).
Many people naively believe that the LHC is the only particle accelerator in the world. However, since the 50s, more than a dozen colliders have been built around the world. The LHC is considered the largest - its length is 25.5 km. In addition, its structure includes another, smaller in diameter, accelerator.
LHC and media
Since the start of construction, many articles have appeared about the high cost and danger of the accelerator. Most people think that the money was wasted and do not understand why it was necessary to spend so much money and effort in order to find some particle.
First, the LHC is not the most expensive scientific project in history. In the south of France there is the Cadarache scientific center with an expensive thermonuclear reactor. Cadarache was built with the support of 6 countries (including Russia); At the moment, about 20 billion dollars have already been invested in it. Secondly, the discovery of the Higgs boson will bring many revolutionary technologies to the world. Moreover, when the first cell phone was invented, people also reacted negatively to its invention...
How does the BAK work?
The LHC collides particle beams at high speeds and monitors their subsequent behavior and interactions. As a rule, one beam of particles is accelerated first on the auxiliary ring, and then sent to the main ring.
Many powerful magnets hold the particles inside the collider. And high-precision instruments record the movements of particles, since the collision occurs in a fraction of a second.
The operation of the collider is organized by CERN (organization for nuclear research).
As a result, after enormous work and financial investments, on July 4, 2012, CERN officially announced that the Higgs boson had been found. Of course, some properties of the boson discovered in practice differ from theoretical aspects, but scientists have no doubts about the “reality” of the Higgs boson.
Why do we need a BAK?
How is the LHC useful for ordinary people? Scientific discoveries related to the discovery of the Higgs boson and the study of quarks may in the future lead to a new scientific and technological revolution.
First, since mass is energy at rest (roughly speaking), it is possible in the future to convert matter into energy. Then there will be no problems with energy, which means it will be possible to travel to distant planets. And this is a step towards interstellar travel...
Secondly, the study of quantum gravity will make it possible in the future to control gravity. However, this will not happen soon, since gravitons are not yet very well understood, and therefore the device that controls gravity may be unpredictable.
Thirdly, there is an opportunity to understand M-theory (a derivative of string theory) in more detail. This theory states that the universe consists of 11 dimensions. M-theory claims to be the “theory of everything,” which means that studying it will allow us to understand the structure of the Universe much better. Who knows, maybe in the future a person will learn to move and influence other dimensions.
LHC and the End of the World
Many people argue that the work of the LHC could destroy humanity. As a rule, people who are poorly versed in physics talk about this. The launch of the LHC was postponed many times, but on September 10, 2008, it was launched. However, it is worth noting that the LHC has never been accelerated to full power. Scientists plan to launch the LHC at full capacity in December 2014. Let's look at the possible causes of the end of the world and other rumors...
1. Creation of a black hole
A black hole is a star with enormous gravity, which attracts not only matter, but also light, and even time. A black hole cannot appear out of nowhere, and therefore scientists from CERN believe that the chances of a stable black hole appearing are extremely small. However, it is possible. When particles collide, a microscopic black hole could be created, large enough to destroy our planet in a couple of years (or less). But humanity should not be afraid, since, thanks to Hawking radiation, black holes quickly lose their mass and energy. Although there are pessimists among scientists who believe that the strong magnetic field inside the collider will not allow the black hole to disintegrate. As a result, the chance that a black hole will be created that will destroy the planet is very small, but there is such a possibility.
2. Formation of “dark matter”
It is also “strange matter”, strapelka (strange droplet), “stranglet”. This is matter that, when colliding with other matter, transforms it into something similar to itself. Those. When a strangelet collides with an ordinary atom, two strangelets are formed, generating a chain reaction. If such matter appears in a collider, humanity will be destroyed in a matter of minutes. However, the chance of this happening is as small as the formation of a black hole.
3. Antimatter
The version related to the fact that during the operation of the collider such an amount of antimatter may appear that it will destroy the planet looks the most delusional. And the point is not even that the chances of the formation of antimatter are very small, but that there are already samples of antimatter on earth, stored in special containers where there is no gravity. It is unlikely that such an amount of antimatter will appear on Earth that will be capable of destroying the planet.
conclusions
Many Russian residents do not even know how to correctly spell the phrase “large hadron collider,” let alone their knowledge of its purpose. And some pseudo-prophets claim that there are no intelligent civilizations in the Universe because every civilization, having achieved scientific progress, creates a collider. Then a black hole is formed, destroying civilization. Hence they explain the large number of massive black holes in the center of galaxies.
However, there are also people who believe that we should quickly launch the LHC, otherwise, when the aliens arrive, they will capture us, since they will consider us savages.
As a result, the only chance to find out what the LHC will bring us is to simply wait. Sooner or later we will find out what awaits us: destruction or progress.
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Many ordinary inhabitants of the planet ask themselves the question of why the Large Hadron Collider is needed. Scientific research, incomprehensible to most, on which many billions of euros have been spent, causes caution and concern.
Maybe this is not research at all, but a prototype of a time machine or a portal for the teleportation of alien creatures that can change the fate of humanity? The most fantastic and terrible rumors are circulating. In this article we will try to understand what a hadron collider is and why it was created.
An ambitious project for humanity
The Large Hadron Collider is currently the most powerful particle accelerator on the planet. It is located on the border of Switzerland and France. More precisely, underneath it: at a depth of 100 meters lies a ring tunnel of the accelerator almost 27 kilometers long. The owner of the experimental site, worth more than 10 billion dollars, is the European Center for Nuclear Research.
Huge amounts of resources and thousands of nuclear physicists are busy accelerating protons and heavy lead ions to near light speeds in different directions and then smashing them into each other. The results of direct interactions are carefully studied.
The proposal to create a new particle accelerator came back in 1984. For ten years there have been various discussions about what the hadron collider will be like and why such a large-scale research project is needed. Only after discussing the specifics of the technical solution and the required installation parameters was the project approved. Construction began only in 2001, using the former particle accelerator - the Large Electron-Positron Collider - to house it.
Why do we need a Large Hadron Collider?
The interaction of elementary particles is described in different ways. The theory of relativity conflicts with quantum field theory. The missing link in achieving a unified approach to the structure of elementary particles is the impossibility of creating a theory of quantum gravity. This is why a high-power hadron collider is needed.
The total energy of particle collisions is 14 teraelectronvolts, making the device a significantly more powerful accelerator than any existing in the world today. By conducting experiments that were previously impossible for technical reasons, scientists will most likely be able to document or refute existing theories of the microworld.
Studying the quark-gluon plasma formed during the collision of lead nuclei will make it possible to construct a more advanced theory of strong interactions, which can radically change nuclear physics and stellar space.
Higgs boson
Back in 1960, Scottish physicist Peter Higgs developed the Higgs field theory, according to which particles entering this field are subject to quantum effects, which in the physical world can be observed as the mass of an object.
If during the experiments it is possible to confirm the theory of the Scottish nuclear physicist and find the Higgs boson (quantum), then this event could become a new starting point for the development of the inhabitants of the Earth.
And the discovered controls of gravity will many times exceed all visible prospects for the development of technological progress. Moreover, advanced scientists are more interested not in the presence of the Higgs boson itself, but in the process of breaking electroweak symmetry.
How does he work
In order for experimental particles to reach a speed unthinkable for the surface, almost equal in vacuum, they are accelerated gradually, each time increasing the energy.
Linear accelerators first inject lead ions and protons, which are then subjected to stepwise acceleration. The particles enter the proton synchrotron through the booster, where they receive a charge of 28 GeV.
At the next stage, the particles enter the super-synchrotron, where their charge energy is increased to 450 GeV. Having reached such indicators, the particles fall into the main multi-kilometer ring, where at specially located collision sites, detectors record in detail the moment of impact.
In addition to detectors capable of recording all processes during a collision, 1625 superconducting magnets are used to hold proton bunches in the accelerator. Their total length exceeds 22 kilometers. Specially designed to achieve a temperature of −271 °C. The cost of each such magnet is estimated at one million euros.
End justifies the means
To carry out such ambitious experiments, the most powerful hadron collider was built. Many scientists tell humanity with undisguised delight why a multibillion-dollar scientific project is needed. True, in the case of new scientific discoveries, most likely, they will be reliably classified.
You can even say for sure. This is confirmed by the entire history of civilization. When the wheel was invented, humanity mastered metallurgy - hello, guns and guns!
All the most modern developments today are becoming the property of the military-industrial complexes of developed countries, but not of all humanity. When scientists learned to split the atom, what came first? Nuclear reactors providing electricity, however, after hundreds of thousands of deaths in Japan. The residents of Hiroshima were clearly against scientific progress, which took away tomorrow from them and their children.
Technical development looks like a mockery of people, because people in it will soon turn into the weakest link. According to the theory of evolution, the system develops and gets stronger, getting rid of its weak points. It may soon turn out that we will have no place left in the world of improving technology. Therefore, the question “why is the Large Hadron Collider needed right now” is in fact not idle curiosity, because it is caused by fear for the fate of all humanity.
Questions that are not answered
Why do we need a large hadron collider if millions on the planet are dying from hunger and incurable, and sometimes treatable, diseases? Will he help overcome this evil? Why does humanity need a hadron collider, which, despite all the development of technology, has not been able to learn how to successfully fight cancer for a hundred years? Or maybe it’s simply more profitable to provide expensive medical services than to find a way to heal? Given the current world order and ethical development, only a handful of representatives of the human race really need a large hadron collider. Why does the entire population of the planet need it, waging a non-stop battle for the right to live in a world free from attacks on anyone’s life and health? History is silent about this...
Concerns of scientific colleagues
There are other representatives of the scientific community who have expressed serious concerns about the safety of the project. There is a high probability that the scientific world, in its experiments, due to its limited knowledge, may lose control over processes that are not even properly studied.
This approach is reminiscent of laboratory experiments of young chemists - mix everything and see what happens. The last example could end in a laboratory explosion. What if such a “success” befalls the hadron collider?
Why do earthlings need an unjustified risk, especially since experimenters cannot say with complete confidence that the processes of particle collisions, leading to the formation of temperatures 100 thousand times higher than the temperature of our star, will not cause a chain reaction of the entire substance of the planet?! Or they will simply call something capable of fatally ruining a vacation in the mountains of Switzerland or the French Riviera...
Information dictatorship
Why is the Large Hadron Collider needed when humanity cannot solve less complex problems? An attempt to suppress an alternative opinion only confirms the possibility of the unpredictability of the course of events.
Probably, where man first appeared, this dual feature was inherent in him - to do good and harm himself at the same time. Perhaps the discoveries that the hadron collider will give us will give us the answer? Why this risky experiment was needed will be decided by our descendants.
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is a typical (albeit super-powerful) colliding particle accelerator designed to accelerate protons and heavy ions (lead ions) and study the products of their collisions. The LHC is a microscope with the help of which physicists will unravel what and how matter is made of, obtaining information about its structure at a new, even more microscopic level.
Many were looking forward to what would happen after its launch, but nothing actually happened - our world is very boring for something really interesting and grandiose to happen. Here is civilization and its crown of creation is man, it’s just that a certain coalition of civilization and people has turned out, having rallied together for the past century, we are polluting the earth in geometric progression, and wantonly destroying everything that has been accumulating for millions of years. We'll talk about this in another post, so here it is HADRON COLLIDER.
Contrary to the numerous and varied expectations of peoples and the media, everything passed quietly and peacefully. Oh, how everything was exaggerated, for example, the newspapers repeated from issue to issue: “LHC = the end of the world!”, “The path to disaster or discovery?”, “Annihilation Catastrophe”, they almost predicted the end of the world and a giant black hole, in which will suck in the whole earth. Apparently these theories were put forward by envious physicists who at school failed to obtain a certificate of completion with the number 5 in this subject.
For example, there was a philosopher Democritus, who in his ancient Greece (by the way, modern schoolchildren write this in one word, because they perceive it as a non-existent strange country, like the USSR, Czechoslovakia, Austria-Hungary, Saxony, Courland, etc. - “Ancient Greece”) he expressed a certain theory that matter consists of indivisible particles - atoms, but scientists found evidence of this only after approximately 2350 years. An atom (indivisible) can also be divided, this was discovered 50 years later, on electrons and kernels, and core– for protons and neutrons. But they, as it turned out, are not the smallest particles and, in turn, consist of quarks. Today, physicists believe that quarks- the limit of the division of matter and nothing less exists. There are six known types of quarks: up, strange, charm, beauty, true, down - and they are connected by gluons.
The word "collider" comes from the English collide - to collide. In a collider, two particle launches fly towards each other and when they collide, the energies of the beams are added. Whereas in conventional accelerators, which have been built and operating for several decades (their first models of relatively moderate size and power appeared before the Second World War in the 30s), the beam hits a stationary target and the energy of such a collision is much less.
The collider is called “hadron” because it is designed to accelerate hadrons. Hadrons- this is a family of elementary particles, which include protons and neutrons; they make up the nuclei of all atoms, as well as various mesons. An important property of hadrons is that they are not truly elementary particles, but consist of quarks “glued together” by gluons.
The collider became large because of its size - it is the largest physical experimental installation ever existing in the world, only the main ring of the accelerator stretches more than 26 km.
It is assumed that the speed of protons accelerated by the LHC will be 0.9999999998 of the speed of light, and the number of particle collisions occurring in the accelerator every second will reach 800 million. The total energy of colliding protons will be 14 TeV (14 teraelectrovolts, and lead nuclei - 5.5 GeV for each pair of colliding nucleons. Nucleons(from Latin nucleus - nucleus) - a common name for protons and neutrons.
There are different opinions about the technology for creating accelerators today: some claim that it has reached its logical limit, others that there is no limit to perfection - and various reviews provide reviews of designs whose size is 1000 times smaller, and whose performance is higher than the LHC' A. In electronics or computer technology, miniaturization is constantly taking place with a simultaneous increase in performance.
Large Hardon Collider, LHC - a typical (albeit extremely) accelerator of charged particles in the beams, designed to disperse the protons and heavy ions (lead ions) and study the products of their collisions. BAC is this microscope, in which physics will unravel, what and how to make the matter of getting information about its device in a new, even more microscopic level.
Many waited eagerly, but what comes after his run, but nothing in principle and has not happened - our world is missing much that has happened is something really interesting and ambitious. Here it is a civilization and its crown of creation man, just got a sort of coalition of civilization and the people, unity, together for over a century, in a geometric progression zagazhivaem land, and beschinno destroying anything that accumulated millions of years. On this we will talk in another message, and so - that he Hadron Collider.
Despite the many and varied expectations of peoples and the media all went quietly and peacefully. Oh, how it was all bloated, like the newspaper firm by number of rooms: “BAC = the end of the world!”, “The road to discovery or disaster?”, “Annihilation catastrophe”, almost the end of the world and things are a gigantic black hole in zasoset that all the land. Perhaps these theories put forward envious of physics, in which the school did not receive a certificate of completion from the figure 5, on the subject.
Here, for example, was a philosopher Democritus, who in ancient Greece (and, incidentally, today's students write it in one word, as seen this strange non-existent, like the USSR, Czechoslovakia, Austria-Hungary, Saxony, Kurland, etc . - “Drevnyayagretsiya”), he had some theory that matter consists of indivisible particles - atoms, but the proof of this, scientists have found only after about 2350 years. Atom (indivisible) - can also be divided, it is found even after 50 years on the electrons and nuclei and the nucleus - protons and neutrons at. But they, as it turned out, not the smallest particles and, in turn, are composed of quarks. To date, physicists believe that quarks — the limit of division of matter and anything less does not exist. We know of six types of quarks: the ceiling, strange, charmed, charming, genuine, bottom — and they are connected via gluons.
The word “Collider” comes from the English collide – face. In the collider, two particles start flying towards each other and with the collision energy beams added. While in conventional accelerators, which are under construction and work for several decades (the first of their models on moderate size and power, appeared before the Second World War in the 30s), puchek strikes on fixed targets and the energy of the collision is much smaller.
"Hadronic" collider named because it is designed to disperse the hadrons. Hadrons - is a family of elementary particles, which include protons and neutrons, composed of the nucleus of all atoms, as well as a variety of mesons. An important feature of hadrons is that they are not truly elementary particles, and are composed of quarks, “glued” gluon.
The big collider has been because of its size — is the largest physical experimental setup ever in the world, only the main accelerator ring stretches for more than 26 km.
It is assumed that the velocity of dispersed tank will 0.9999999998 protons to the speed of light, and the number of collisions of particles originating in the accelerator every second, to 800 million total energy of colliding protons will be 14 TeV (14 teraelektro-volt, and the nuclei of lead - 5.5 GeV for each pair of colliding nucleons. nucleons (from Lat. nucleus - nucleus) - the generic name for the protons and neutrons.
There are different views on the creation of accelerator technology to date: some say that it came to its logical side, others that there is no limit to perfection — and the various surveys provided an overview of structures, which are 1000 times smaller, but higher productivity BUCK 'Yes. In the electronics or computer technology is constantly miniaturization, while the growth of efficiency.
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