6403 The Next Generation(s) of Particle Accelerators: Faster, Better, and then What?

Friday, February 17, 2012: 1:00 PM
Room 220 (VCC West Building)
Lia Merminga , TRIUMF, Vancouver, BC, Canada
As results from Fermilab's Tevatron and CERN's Large Hadron Collider show, discoveries about the basic properties of the universe and how it works are revealed from very high-energy collisions of subatomic particles. As discoveries illuminate the path forward, how can we afford to continue exploring the next frontiers of particle physics?  What are the types of tools that would be used to create and analyze the Higgs boson or dark matter in the laboratory? This talk will review the state-of-the-art design principles and technologies that are envisioned for the next generation of high-energy particle accelerators, describe their potential advantages and risks, and consider development timelines. I will examine the emerging research areas and developing technologies that may achieve higher acceleration gradients, much higher efficiency, and increased energy range—all while potentially being less costly. These next-generation accelerator technologies will not only drive new scientific breakthroughs but they will also drive new applications in business and society, such as the transmutation of nuclear waste and the production of valuable medical isotopes.
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