In a small, brutalist building at CERN, Europe’s particle physics laboratory on the outskirts of Geneva, Switzerland, Edda Gschwendtner is working on a promising kind of particle accelerator. This accelerator, called AWAKE, creates a wave of plasma and sends electrons surfing along it. Unlike traditional colliders, which are getting bigger and more expensive, plasma wakefield accelerators like AWAKE are compact but powerful.
AWAKE has had a series of successes in accelerating electrons over short distances, and researchers are now looking to take it to higher energies. This technology has the potential to revitalize particle physics and help us make new discoveries about the nature of reality.
Insights
– The AWAKE experiment at CERN is developing a type of particle accelerator known as a plasma wakefield accelerator.
– Plasma wakefield accelerators are compact but can achieve much stronger accelerations compared to traditional colliders.
– AWAKE has already achieved successes in accelerating electrons over short distances.
– Researchers are working towards taking AWAKE to higher energies to further explore new physics.
Overall, the AWAKE experiment and other plasma wakefield accelerators hold promise for advancing our understanding of the fundamental properties of the universe.
