1 of 84

USPAS Concepts:�Applications of Accelerators

Sophie Crisp, Paris Franz, Lauren Alsberg

2 of 84

Schedule

2

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

3 of 84

What are accelerators for?

3

LCLS @SLAC

LANSCE @LANL

CERN

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

4 of 84

Overview Applications

R&D Machines

Nuclear & Particle Physics

High energy physics
Some of the earliest applications

Neutron Science
Light sources

Synchrotrons (ring)
Free electron lasers (linac)

Commercial & Industry

Nuclear Medicine

Radiotherapy
Medical isotopes

Cargo inspections
Polymer treatment:

Diapers, shrink wrap, roads

Sterilization

Food, medical equipment

Waste treatment
Ion implantation
Lithography

4

https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/breaking/2009/05/02/the-stuff-you-can-do-with-accelerators

https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/march-2013/how-particle-physics-improves-your-life

https://arxiv.org/pdf/2407.10216

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

5 of 84

Light Sources

Synchrotrons & Free Electron Lasers (FEL)

5

6 of 84

Types of X-Rays

Credit E. Harms

6

X-rays with high photon energies above 5–10 keV (below 0.2–0.1 nm wavelength) are called hard X-rays, while those with lower energy (and longer wavelength) are called soft X-rays.^[71] The intermediate range with photon energies of several keV is often referred to as tender X-rays.

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

7 of 84

Synchrotron Light Sources

https://www.synchrotron-soleil.fr/en/videos/soleil-light-source-research

Short explainer video.
Linear accelerator injects particles into a ring.
X-rays are generated with insertion devices.
Number of user hutches (experimental areas) scales with ring.
Wide/broad band radiation.
Resulting light is used to study a variety of materials, atomic physics, biology, medicine, and more.

7

APS

Soleil

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

8 of 84

Synchrotron Light Sources

8

>50 worldwide

NSLS-II @ BNL

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

9 of 84

X-Ray Free Electron Laser (FEL)

9

Only 5 operating FELs in the world
China is currently commissioning the 6^th in Shanghai (SHINE)

Narrow band short pulse radiation (vs. synchrotron).
Fewer user hutches (experimental areas) vs. synchrotron due to linear accelerator.

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

10 of 84

X-Ray Free Electron Laser (FEL)

10

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

11 of 84

Free Electron Laser Working Principle

11

FEL process starts a feedback loop that causes the electrons to self organize, leading to exponential gain in power and coherent light!

Radiation

Energy Modulation

Density Modulation

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

12 of 84

Science with FELs

12

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

13 of 84

Science with Light Sources

13

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

14 of 84

Science with Light Sources

14

X-ray Diffraction DNA

Medical Radiograph

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

15 of 84

Science with FELs: Molecular Movies

15

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

16 of 84

Science with FELs: Molecular Movies

16

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

17 of 84

EUV Lithography

17

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photoresist

https://www.xlight.com/technology#what-we-deliver

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

18 of 84

Industrial Applications

18

19 of 84

Industrial Applications

Ion Implantation:

Used to dope semiconductors.
Commercial units widely available at low energy (~10-500 keV).
"All digital electronics now depend on particle beams for ion implantation, creating a $1.5 billion annual market for ion-beam accelerators.”

https://science.osti.gov/-/media/hep/pdf/files/pdfs/Accel_for_Americas_Future_final_report.pdf

19

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-83056-3_16

BNL Ion Implantation test facility

https://www.semicorex.com/news-show-8788.html

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

20 of 84

Industrial Applications

Cargo Inspection:

Use ~3-9 MeV electrons to make x-rays - accelerator sources far more penetrating than radioiosotope sources
<30 seconds to scan a truck.

20

https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/august-2010/cargo-scanning

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

21 of 84

Industrial Applications

21

Sterilization

Between 40-50% of disposable medical products manufactured in North America are currently radiation sterilized - some 60Co, some e-
Wastewater (~1 MeV e-)
Food packaging

https://arxiv.org/pdf/2407.10216

https://www.steri-tek.com/e-beam/

ARIES Meeting, 2018

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

Why polymer modification

HEP DC packet

Electron beams can be used as a sterilisation technique, and this is used extensively in industries such

as medical equipment sterilisation, food processing and pharmaceuticals. Manufacturers of medical

disposables have to ensure that syringes, bandages, surgical tools and other gear do not carry pathogens,

without altering the material itself. Between 40-50% of all disposable medical products manufactured

in North America are currently radiation sterilised, primarily at 60Co irradiation facilities [2]. When an

electron beam is used instead, it is referred to as ‘e-beam sterilisation’.

Compared to gamma irradiation from a sealed radioactive source, e-beam methods are typically faster,

of the order of a few seconds rather than hours. However, this comes at a cost of electron beams typically

having limited penetration depth particularly through dense material. This makes e-beam processing best

for simple, low density products. Many medical supplies fall into this category.

22 of 84

Industrial Applications

22

ARIES Meeting, 2018

Manufacturing

Polymer crosslinking: shrink wrap, shrink tubing

Ink Curing: food packaging

Non-destructive testing

https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/october-2009/accelerator-application-shrink-wrap?language_content_entity=und

Photo: Reidar Hahn, Fermilab

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

Many of the materials routinely irradiated are polymers: when polymers are cross-linked, they

can become stable against heat, have increased tensile strength, and develop resistance to cracking or

heat shrinking properties. Polymer cross-linking applications include: wire cable tubing, ink curing,

shrink film, tyres and other areas [21]. Electron beams can even be used to cure or harden the tarmac

surface of roads.

Non-destructive testing frequently involves electron linear accelerators up to a few MeV in beam energy.

These electrons are used to generate X-rays for CT inspection of high-density items or objects which are

large and difficult to inspect in other ways. Typical objects include cast or forged items, turbine blades,

aerospace or aircraft components including engines or defence items such as missiles. [29].

Non-destructive testing also finds increasing use in civil engineering applications, allowing engineers to

identify internal defects in structures such as pipelines, buildings, bridges, garages and other objects [30].

These techniques are becoming increasingly important in an era of 3D printing where internal defects

can arise and be harder to characterise than traditional manufacturing techniques. Further reading can be

found in [22].

23 of 84

Medical Applications

Cancer Therapy

23

24 of 84

An Overview of Accelerators for Healthcare

24

Accelerator

Primary Beam

Secondary Beam

Protons

Ions

X-Rays

Neutrons

Proton Therapy (>150 accelerators)

Radiation Therapy (~14,000)

Neutron Therapy (7)

Ion Therapy (12)

Electrons

Inter Operation Radiation Therapy (IORT) (>300)

Very High Energy Electron (VHEE) Therapy (0)

Hadron Therapy

Radioisotopes

Imaging

Therapy

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) (~1,500)

Targeted Alpha Therapy, others

Target

Theranostics

Adapted from Vretenar, 2025

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

25 of 84

Medical Applications: Radiotherapy

Small electron linacs incident on foil to produce x-rays (photons)
Shaping done with collimator or raster scanning

25

“Inside a Varian linear accelerator”, Varian

Collimator

Current clinical standard
Shaped to match the tumor being treated (inside patient)
Beam hitting collimator is wasted

Pencil Scan

Slow (seconds to minutes)
Dose determined by intensity modulation during scan
Can be used for FLASH

”Development of raster scanning IMRT using a robotic radiosurgery system”, H. Shiromi, et al., JRR 2021

Varian Multi Leaf Collimator,

Thomas Bortfeld 2006 Phys. Med. Biol. 51 R363

Linac

Foil to produce x-rays

Collimation system

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

26 of 84

Medical Applications: Radiotherapy

26

Cyberknife, Stanford Medical Center

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

27 of 84

Medical Applications: Charged Particle Therapy (CPT)

X-rays have maximum dose near entry and decay.
Meanwhile, charged particles have localized dose. (Bragg peak).

Greater dose where needed
Less morbidity for healthy tissue
Less damage to vital organs

27

https://e-crt.org/upload/pdf/crt-2021-066.pdf

Bragg peak

Carbon ion therapy

Conventional X-Rays

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

28 of 84

A (Highly Abbreviated) Timeline

28

1904

Bragg peaks defined

Energy, depth-dose plots

1946

Wilson proposes cancer therapy with protons and ions

1954

Animal studies at LBNL

Human treatment followed (protons)

184-in/4.6 m Cyclotron

1975

First ion therapy at LBNL

1990

First hospital-based proton machine

Loma Linda (US)

1994

First hospital-based ion machine (Japan)

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

29 of 84

Medical Applications: CPT Protons & Ions

Cyclotron

Produce one energy that can be ’degraded’.

Synchrotron

Can provide variable energies but are usually larger.

Ion sources used.

H gas can be used for protons.
ECR source used at HIMAC (Japan)

29

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-4-431-54457-9_3

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780323991919000037

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

30 of 84

There are 50 Operating Centers for Proton Therapy in the United States

30

https://proton-therapy.org/findacenter/

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

31 of 84

Medical Applications: Ongoing Research

FLASH Therapy (active development):

High dose delivered in a fraction of a second (>50 Gy/s) vs. minutes for conventional radiotherapy.
Reduces damage to healthy tissue.
Treatment times could be reduced.
Can be electron, photon, or proton.

Very High Energy Electrons (VHEE)

High E to the medical field, not necessarily accelerator folks (~50-250 MeV)
A method proposed to deliver FLASH doses.
Several patents filed.
Treatment not available in this form yet.

31

P. Maxim, S. Tantawi, and B. Loo, “PHASER: A platform for clinical translation of FLASH cancer radiotherapy”, Radiotherapy and Oncology, 2019

J. Wilson, et. al, “Ultra-high dose rate (FLASH) Radiotherapy: Silver Bullet or Fool’s Gold”, Frontiers in Oncology, 2019

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

32 of 84

Medical Applications

Isotope production

32

33 of 84

An Overview of Accelerators for Healthcare

33

Accelerator

Primary Beam

Secondary Beam

Protons

Ions

X-Rays

Neutrons

Proton Therapy (>150 accelerators)

Radiation Therapy (~14,000)

Neutron Therapy (7)

Ion Therapy (12)

Electrons

Inter Operation Radiation Therapy (IORT) (>300)

Very High Energy Electron (VHEE) Therapy (0)

Hadron Therapy

Radioisotopes

Imaging

Therapy

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) (~1,500)

Targeted Alpha Therapy, others

Target

Theranostics

Adapted from Vretenar, 2025

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

34 of 84

Positron Emission Tomography

34

Rong et al. Nature Communications volume 14, Article number: 3257 (2023)

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

35 of 84

Radioisotopes are necessary for both diagnosis and treatment.

35

Current Research: More radiopharmaceuticals which serve both as treatments and as imaging technologies - “Theranostics”

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41392-024-02041-6

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

36 of 84

Medical Applications: Isotope Productions

Credit: E. Harms

36

Modest energy
High beam current
Variety of particle species
Flexible beam delivery
(mostly) readily available technologies

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgeAU36O8J0

Radioisotope Production: NUSANO

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

37 of 84

Spallation Sources

Neutron Science

37

38 of 84

Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) ORNL

38

https://neutrons.ornl.gov/science

https://youtu.be/utnafhH8AR0

Credit E. Harms

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

39 of 84

Science Using Neutrons

39

https://ess.eu/science-using-neutrons

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

40 of 84

European Spallation Source (ESS)

https://ess.eu/about

40

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

41 of 84

Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) ORNL

Protons are generated by stripping H in a foil.

Protons hit a circulating liquid mercury target.

41

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

42 of 84

Accelerator Research

R&D, upgrades, and potential machines

42

43 of 84

New and Potential Accelerators

43

Upgrades

ALS-U @ LBNL
LCLS-II-HE @ SLAC
PIP-II @ Fermilab
Electron Ion Collider (EIC) @ BNL

Proposed:

Wakefield Accelerators
Future Circular Collider (FCC) @ CERN
Muon Collider

Accelerators are often built with an upgrade path in mind…

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

44 of 84

ALS-U @LBNL

44

Upgrade to the Advanced Light Source (ALS)
Electron beam energy of 2 GeV and a high current of 500 mA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sa4sycxeIg &t=77s

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

45 of 84

Electron Ion Collider (EIC)

45

https://www.bnl.gov/eic/science.php

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

46 of 84

Potential Accelerators: FCC

46

Main Objective: study in detail the Higgs boson and its interactions with other known fundamental particles – it will be a “Higgs factory.”

~90 km circumference

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

47 of 84

Potential Accelerators: Muon Collider

47

Parameters of Interest:

Point-like, fundamental particle
Mass = 105.66 MeV/c (206.77 x e^-)

Challenge:

Lifetime at rest = 2.2 μs

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

48 of 84

Potential Accelerators: Muon Collider

Credit: E. Harms

48

Muon Collider in the News

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

49 of 84

Accelerator Scaling

49

The scale of accelerators is determined in part by

The frequency of the field used
Breakdown events, which limit the acceleration gradient in the structures
Radiation losses

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

50 of 84

Advanced Accelerator Concepts: Plasma Wakefield

50

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-65742-8

One answer to the question: how do we avoid breakdown?

Plasma Wakefield Acceleration has shown high gradients (GeV/m) in centimeter to meter scale distances
Can be driven by electron beam or laser beam
High quality beam acceleration has enabled FEL demonstration

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

51 of 84

Advanced Accelerator Concepts: THz Structures

51

Terahertz (aka mm wave) radiation has been used to power tiny accelerators, bunching structures, and timing diagnostics:

The high frequency gives inherently higher timing precision, as well as access to high gradients
Enables femtosecond bunch lengths without sacrificing timing precision

(https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.124.054801 )

Nanni et al., Nature Communications volume 6, Article number: 8486 (2015)

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

52 of 84

Advanced Accelerator Concepts: Dielectric Laser Acceleration

Chip based accelerators powered by off the shelf lasers have demonstrated GeV/m acceleration gradients
Leverage advanced laser shaping techniques to enable beam manipulation
Inherent attosecond time structure

52

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

53 of 84

Summary

53

Particle accelerators born out of fundamental research
Research machines remain dominant in size, but not number
Applications far exceed modest beginnings
Enhance many aspects of modern life
Ever-changing opportunities and advances!

Pie chart of roughly 46000 commercial accelerators (2016)

https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1468902

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

54 of 84

Backup

54

55 of 84

OTHER APPLICATIONS

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

55

Wilson chapter 13
Engines of Discovery

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

56 of 84

Undulator Radiation

Tunability

56

Large K

Low photon energy

Small K

High photon energy

Tapered

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

57 of 84

Free Electron Laser

57

Resonance Equation

Kim, K., Huang, Z., & Lindberg, R. (2017). Synchrotron Radiation and Free-Electron Lasers: Principles of Coherent X-Ray Generation.

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

58 of 84

Undulator Radiation

Tunability

58

Large K

Low photon energy

Small K

High photon energy

Tapered

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

59 of 84

APPLICATIONS OF ACCELERATORS

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

59

Nuclear/Particle physics – the original driving force
Medical
Materials science
Neutron science
Synchrotron light – rings + FEL’s
Industry

- Food processing

Material treatment: diapers, shrink wrap, roads
Sterilization

Cargo scanning
Ion implantation
(Waste) water treatment
Transmutation of nuclear waste

https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/breaking/2009/05/02/the-stuff-you-can-do-with-accelerators

https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/march-2013/how-particle-physics-improves-your-life

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

60 of 84

STORAGE RING

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

60

Rings on steroids
Can function as an accelerator, too
Circulate particles for a long time = minutes, hours, …
Higher level of accuracy, reliability

field/power supply regulation
temperature stability
vibration tolerance
vacuum level
Diagnostics
level of human intervention
Refillable
lifetime

Examples: proton colliders, synchrotron light sources, antimatter collectors

NSLS-II status

LHC status

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

61 of 84

RADIO FREQUENCY QUADRUPOLE

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

61

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

62 of 84

APPLICATIONS OF ACCELERATORS

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

62

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

63 of 84

APPLICATIONS OF ACCELERATORS

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

63

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

64 of 84

APPLICATIONS – MEDICAL

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

64

https://indico.cern.ch/event/78565/contributions/2089972/attachments/1058825/1509767/ASP2010_-_Medical_accelerators.pdf

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

65 of 84

APPLICATIONS – PARTICLE & NUCLEAR PHYSICS

65

http://www-elsa.physik.uni-bonn.de/accelerator_list.html

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

66 of 84

THANK YOU

Mirjam Nilsson

mirjam@contoso.com

www.contoso.com

66

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

67 of 84

SYNCH LIGHT SOURCES

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

67

The major applications of synchrotron light are in condensed matter physics, materials science, biology and medicine. A large fraction of experiments using synchrotron light involve probing the structure of matter from the sub-nanometer level of electronic structure to the micrometer and millimeter levels important in medical imaging. An example of a practical industrial application is the manufacturing of microstructures by the LIGA process.

Synchrotron is one of the most expensive kinds of light source known, but it is practically the only viable luminous source of wide-band radiation in far infrared wavelength range for some applications, such as far-infrared absorption spectrometry.

APS

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

68 of 84

X-RAY FREE ELECTRON LASER

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

68

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUeraeIkTmo

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

69 of 84

Undulator Radiation

69

Resonance Equation

Kim, K., Huang, Z., & Lindberg, R. (2017). Synchrotron Radiation and Free-Electron Lasers: Principles of Coherent X-Ray Generation.

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

70 of 84

Undulator Radiation

70

Lorentz length contraction to beam frame

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

71 of 84

EMITTANCE EXCHANGE

71

Principle: Exchange transverse and longitudinal emittances

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

72 of 84

ENERGY RECOVERY LINAC

Lecture 4 | Concepts of Accelerator Science & Technology | Summer 2025

72

CERN Courier

6 June 20025

Inventor:

Maury Tigner

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

73 of 84

POTENTIAL ACCELERATORS - ILC

Credit: E. Harms

73

https://linearcollider.org/

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

74 of 84

Emittance Exchange

Transverse shaping is used to shape the longitudinal emittance.
Active research area that could impact machines with longitudinal requirements.

BNL

74

ANL

https://www.anl.gov/awa/phase-space-manipulation

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

75 of 84

SLIDES from Day 1 talk:

Next few slides I cut from accelerators 101.

Feel free to delete or use some of the pictures, etc.

75

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

76 of 84

Types of Accelerators: Cyclotron

A charged particle in a magnetic field, B, moves in a circular path of radius r at a speed v. The time to orbit once is:

T = 2πm / eB

As the particle passes the gap, it gets accelerated, circulates on a slightly larger orbit, but the time to go around remains fixed.
Eventually, the orbit gets big enough that the particle leaves the device.

76

4.5 in.

E.O. Lawrence,

1931

K.E. = 80,000 eV!

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

77 of 84

Types of Accelerators: Synchrotrons

SPEAR, SLAC

ALS, LBNL

APS, ANL

77

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

78 of 84

Types of Accelerators: Ion Machines

Argonne Tandem Linac Accelerator System (ATLAS - Argonne)

Facility for Rare Isotope Beams

(FRIB - MSU)

78

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

79 of 84

Types of Accelerators: Proton Machines

Often high energy physics focused.

CERN - LHC

79

https://www.fnal.gov/pub/science/particle-accelerators/accelerator-complex.html

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

80 of 84

Types of Accelerators: Photoinjectors

80

Accelerator Wakefield Accelerator Facility:

Operates at 1.3 GHz
1.5 cell, copper cavity
Repetition rate of 1-10 Hz
CsTe cathode
1-100 nC charge

https://www.bnl.gov/atf/beamlines/photoinjector.php

BNL Accelerator Test Facility:

Operates at 2.586 GHz
1.6 cell, copper cavity
Repetition rate of 1-10 Hz
Copper cathode
0.1-1 nC charge

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

81 of 84

Types of Accelerators: Free Electron Lasers

Complementary to Synchrotrons (light sources)

Only 6 located around the world, and one under construction.

Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS), SLAC

81

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

82 of 84

European Spallation Source (ESS)

Credit E. Harms

82

First protons through the Linac - May 2025

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

83 of 84

Charged Particle Therapy (CPT) & Radiotherapy (RT)

Brief History:

1904 Bragg peaks defined.

Energy, depth-dose plots.

1946 Wilson proposes cancer therapy with protons and ions.
1954 Animal studies at LBNL

Human treatment followed (protons).
184-inch/4.6 m Cyclotron.

1975 First ion therapy at LBNL.
1990 First hospital-based proton machine (Loma Linda).
1994 First hospital-based ion machine (Japan).
1997-2005 GSI (Germany)

Invented pencil beam shaping

Many more updates…

Charged particles have localized dose. (Bragg peak).
X-rays have maximum dose near entry, and decay.
Cancer tissue is ionized.

83

https://e-crt.org/upload/pdf/crt-2021-706.pdf

https://e-crt.org/upload/pdf/crt-2021-066.pdf

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators

84 of 84

Medical Applications: Ongoing Research

FLASH Therapy (active development):

High dose delivered in a fraction of a second (>50 Gy/s).
Reduces damage to healthy tissue.
Treatment times could be reduced.
Can be electron, photon, or proton.

84

Very High Energy Electrons (VHEE)

High E to the medical field, not necessarily to accelerator folks
A method proposed to deliver FLASH doses.
Several patents filed.
Treatment not available in this form yet.

C. Recker, 2022

P. Maxim, S. Tantawi, and B. Loo, “PHASER: A platform for clinical translation of FLASH cancer radiotherapy”, Radiotherapy and Oncology, 2019

J. Wilson, et. al, “Ultra-high dose rate (FLASH) Radiotherapy: Silver Bullet or Fool’s Gold”, Frontiers in Oncology, 2019

USPAS Summer 2026 · Concepts of Accelerator Science and Technology · Applications of Accelerators