Large hadron collider length
Pro Research Analysisby 
Searched over 200M research papers
Large Hadron Collider Length: An Overview
Introduction to the Large Hadron Collider (LHC)
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is a monumental scientific instrument designed to explore the fundamental properties of particles. Located at CERN, near Geneva, Switzerland, the LHC is a proton and heavy ion accelerator and collider that has significantly advanced our understanding of particle physics 27.
LHC Length and Structure
Circumference and Tunnel Specifications
The LHC is housed in a circular tunnel with a circumference of 27 kilometers (km) 257. This tunnel, situated approximately 100 meters underground, was originally constructed for the Large Electron-Positron Collider (LEP) and has been repurposed for the LHC 48. The tunnel's diameter is 3.8 meters, which necessitated innovative design solutions to accommodate the LHC's components within the limited space .
Design and Engineering Innovations
To fit within the existing LEP tunnel, the LHC employs a compact "two-in-one" magnet design, where two rings are integrated into a single magnetic structure. This design was crucial for maximizing the use of the available space and reducing costs . Additionally, the LHC uses superfluid helium cooling on a massive scale to achieve the high magnetic fields required for particle acceleration .
Operational Details
Beam and Collision Parameters
The LHC accelerates two counter-rotating beams of protons or lead ions, each comprising 2808 bunches with 1.1×10^11 protons per bunch. These beams travel in opposite directions and collide at four experimental sites equipped with detectors such as ATLAS, ALICE, CMS, and LHCb 14. The bunch length is 0.5 nanoseconds (ns), and neighboring bunches are separated by 25 ns, resulting in a total beam duration of about 89 microseconds (µs) .
Energy and Power
Each beam in the LHC stores approximately 350 megajoules (MJ) of energy, which is sufficient to melt 500 kilograms of copper in the event of a failure in the machine protection systems . The LHC is designed to collide particles at a center-of-mass energy of 14 tera-electronvolts (TeV) for proton-proton collisions and 5.5 TeV for lead-lead collisions .
Conclusion
The Large Hadron Collider is a 27 km long particle accelerator that has pushed the boundaries of engineering and particle physics. Its innovative design, including the two-in-one magnet structure and extensive use of superfluid helium cooling, has enabled it to operate within the constraints of the existing LEP tunnel. The LHC continues to be a cornerstone of particle physics research, providing invaluable data and insights into the fundamental nature of matter.
Sources and full results
Most relevant research papers on this topic