This book for the first time chronicles the development of particle accelerators from the invention of electrostatic accelerators, linear accelerators, and the cyclotron to the colliders of today. It also addresses accelerators employed as sources of x-rays, for medical purposes, and in industrial applications. The book identifies the crucial discoveries in applied physics and engineering that have driven the field and gives the reader insight into the people who made these discoveries as well as the methods they used. Particle accelerators exploit every aspect of today s cutting edge technology to the full and they themselves have contributed to these technologies. It is a saga every bit as fascinating as man s mastery of transport and communications a century before and from which we have much to learn for the future. Thus, the book should appeal to the general public, scientists, and students. The field of accelerator physics is, at this time, a very active field. The governments of developed and developing countries spend hundreds of millions of dollars annually on particle physics research a pure science with important implications for the understanding of not only particle physics, but also astronomy and cosmology. At the same time there is much activity in developing light sources and spallation neutron sources both employed for extensive studies in surface science, chemistry, biology, and medicine. There is also large commercial activity in producing accelerators for industrial and medical use.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
History is not arbitrary. The history of accelerators is no exception. For nearly a century, ideas of newer and ever more advanced accelerators evolved, one new brilliant idea led to another, and one pioneer built on the accomplishments of predecessors. Told by two story-tellers, this insightful book weaves together the stories of the people, the episodes, and their moments of eureka. The reader is to be pleasantly rewarded with their own moments of revelations --Professor Alexander W Chao, SLAC, Stanford
Review
This beautiful book traces the history of particle accelerators, from the first table-top devices to the present 30-km-circumference colliders. Very richly illustrated, written in a fresh, 'non-technical' yet scientifically accurate style, it admirably transmits the spirit of this truly international venture. With excellent biographical material on the main actors and the numerous 'sidebars' explaining technical developments, it appeals to the expert as well as to the general public. A delight and a 'must' for anybody interested in the (ongoing!) saga of accelerator development.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
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4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
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This review is from: Engines of Discovery: A Century of Particle Accelerators (Paperback)
This book is basically a tribute from the good old boys to the good old boys in the inner circle of accelerator builders -- and they're all boys, and all but half a dozen of the people listed in the sidebars are over 70 (or are dead). It also emphasizes contributions other than American, which is a plus. On the other hand, there are many significant omissions. Most striking is the omission of the many contributions made by one of the authors, Andy Sessler, both as an accelerator theoretician and as director of the Berkeley lab. There is only a superficial discussion of the Los Alamos Meson Facility, with its high intensity proton and neutron beams, and its pioneering work in pion cancer therapy, and its guiding spirit and director, Louis Rosen, isn't mentioned at all. The Princeton Pennsylvania Accelerator (later, the Princeton Particle Accelerator) is not recognized as the first rapid cycling synchrotron, and the first synchrotron to accelerate relativistic heavy ions, where the first biology and physics experiments with these were performed. The director of the PPA, Milton White, had the original idea for the separated function configuration currently standard for all machines (he also wrote the first textbook on radar after working at the MIT radiation laboratory during the war). Most importantly, the book does not make good on its title. Unless you are already familiar with the field, there is no way you can appreciate why accelerators are "engines of discovery", or how, from this slim volume. I bought it based on a review in Physics Today, evidently written by someone who has no clue about this rich and important field of science and technology.
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international linear collider, linac coherent light source, synchrotron radiation sources, national accelerator laboratory, time projection chamber, spiral sector cyclotrons, accelerator builders, accelerating column, ionization cooling, linear collider, induction accelerators, main linac, accelerator designers, stochastic cooling, electrostatic machines, electron linacs, superconducting linac, test accelerator, proton machines, superconducting cavities, drive beam, accelerating cavities, proton linacs, electrostatic accelerators, accelerating gradient Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
World War, Nobel Prize, Los Alamos, University of California, Wilson Prize, American Physical Society, Cambridge Electron Accelerator, Van de Graaff, United States, Luis Alvarez, Soviet Union, Stanford University, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Linear Accelerators, Bob Wilson, Rad Lab, Proton Synchrotron, Bjorn Wiik, Cavendish Laboratory, John Adams, Stan Livingston, John Blewett, University of Illinois, Radiation Laboratory, Free Electron Laser Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
international linear collider, linac coherent light source, synchrotron radiation sources, national accelerator laboratory, time projection chamber, spiral sector cyclotrons, accelerator builders, accelerating column, ionization cooling, linear collider, induction accelerators, main linac, accelerator designers, stochastic cooling, electrostatic machines, electron linacs, superconducting linac, test accelerator, proton machines, superconducting cavities, drive beam, accelerating cavities, proton linacs, electrostatic accelerators, accelerating gradient Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
World War, Nobel Prize, Los Alamos, University of California, Wilson Prize, American Physical Society, Cambridge Electron Accelerator, Van de Graaff, United States, Luis Alvarez, Soviet Union, Stanford University, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Linear Accelerators, Bob Wilson, Rad Lab, Proton Synchrotron, Bjorn Wiik, Cavendish Laboratory, John Adams, Stan Livingston, John Blewett, University of Illinois, Radiation Laboratory, Free Electron Laser Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
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