The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is scheduled for a prolonged shutdown beginning in June for significant upgrades. Concurrently, scientists are considering the eventual decommissioning of the atom smasher.
Located near the Swiss-French border, the LHC is a 16-mile, ring-shaped underground particle accelerator. Its function is to simulate extreme cosmic conditions from the early universe by accelerating particles to near light speed. In 2012, the LHC facilitated the discovery of the Higgs boson, an elementary particle associated with giving other particles mass.
Upgrade Details
Starting in June, engineers will commence a five-year upgrade project known as the high-luminosity LHC. This initiative aims to increase the particle collision rate by a factor of ten, enabling more experiments and data collection. The LHC is projected to become operational again by mid-2030.
Mark Thomson, the new Director-General of CERN, the intergovernmental organization overseeing the LHC, stated that the ongoing data collection from the LHC will provide sufficient material for analysis during the shutdown period.
Future Collider Plans
CERN is also developing plans for a successor to the LHC. The primary candidate, the Future Circular Collider (FCC), is proposed to have a circumference of 56 miles. The first phase of the FCC, designed for electron-positron collisions, is anticipated for the late 2040s, followed by a second phase for proton acceleration in the 2070s.
The FCC faces financial challenges, with an estimated cost of nearly $19 billion. Questions persist regarding funding sources and the optimal methodologies for addressing scientific inquiries such as the nature of dark matter and dark energy. Thomson affirmed his support for large particle accelerators, citing their role in fundamental universe understanding.