Help Urgent!! Particle Accelerators (1 Viewer)

[echelon4]

I want to know what particle accelerators do but can't seem to find anything anywhere! I've been searching on this forums, but the answers are very vague.

My question is what do particle accelerators tell us about the structure/ behaviour matter? How do they do this?

I've seen answer like 'they disrupt the nucleus and act as a probe' etc, but i still don't get HOW this disruption will explain anything about the structure/behaviour of matter

Please help i'm stressing out!!

Thanks in advanced.

 

[alcalder]

Echelon4 - don't stress. I am a true believer in Wikipedia. If the answer is not there, there is sometimes many links to other places where you can find more information.

The page for Particle Accelerators is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Particle_accelerator

Essentailly, by smashing the nucleus apart it is like... think of a game of pool (if you know the game - or Snooker). You send the white ball down the table to break apart the ten balls set in their nice neat triangle. They break apart and go in all their different directions.

So, you smash the nucleus and end up breaking apart protons from each other (breaking the strong nuclear force), neutrons and then you may even break apart the protons and neutrons into their component bits. Using detectors, they look at the momentum, mass and charge of these particles and so learn the about the nature of the makeup of the atom.

For example, just as you can "see" particles in a Wilson Cloud Chamber.

Hope that helps.,

 

[M-turkey]

Particle accelerators, such as those at CERN can also give information about the structure of the different particles.

Examples are:
When Accelerated electrons collide they act in the same way as two balls would collide, its simple and rather predictable on how the electrons will act after the collision.
However when accelerated protons collide the result is different. They react as though the protons were made up of multiple objects. (I.e. if you taped 3 balls together and collided them with another 3 balls taped together, they would bounce back in different directions as it has an uneven surface). This lead physicists to infer that protons were made of multiple particles, that have been come to know as quarks).