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Episode 517: Preparation for accelerators and detectors topic
Accelerators and detectors
There are over 10,000 accelerators worldwide: 5000 each in medicine (therapy, isotope production) and industry (e.g. used for ion implantation in semi conductors and into metal for hardening etc), plus over 100 used for basic research by a whole range of scientific disciplines.
The topic of particle acceleration and detection is useful as it illustrates many aspects of physics which students are likely to have studied already, and it introduces them to an area in which fundamental physics is making progress.
There are opportunities for demonstrations that illustrate the basic ideas of particle acceleration and detection.
Episode 518: Particle accelerators
Episode 519: Particle detectors
Main aims Students will: Apply their knowledge of the motion of charged particles in electric and magnetic fields to particle accelerators and detectors. |  |
Prior knowledge
Students should know about forces on charges in electric and magnetic fields, and their effects on motion. In particular, they should know about how circular motion arises when a charged particle moves in a uniform magnetic field.
They should be familiar with the basic conservation laws (charge, energy, momentum).
An alternative approach would be to combine a study of accelerators and detectors with a study of electric and magnetic fields.
Where this leads
If your specification requires it, you could go on from here to study the Standard Model (quarks, leptons and fundamental forces).
Download Word version of Episode 517 (30 KB)
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