Dictionary

synchrotron radiation

Due to effects that can be derived from special relativity, synchrotron radiation is densely concentrated and very intense. These properties, together with the fact that it is very easy to produce synchrotron radiation with a clearly defined frequency, make this type of radiation a valuable tool for research not only in basic physics, but also in biology and medicine.

When it was first discovered, synchrotron radiation was an (annoying!) side effect, observable at particle accelerators which were used for research into the basic properties of elementary particles. Nowadays, there are many accelerators whose main purposes is the production of this radiation!

For a list of important European Synchrotrons, have a look at > FIS-Landschaft, with BESSY II, PETRA III or the ESRF.

In the US, you can find the > National Synchrotron Light Source II at the Brookhaven National Laboratory

Definitioner

synchrotron

A particle accelerator, in which particles are accelerated with the help of electric fields, while strong magnetic fields keep them on track (the fact that ever-stronger magnetic fields are needed as acceleration proceeds is a consequence of the fact that relativistic mass increases with speed.)

synchrotron radiation

Electromagnetic radiation produced when electrically charged particles (for instance, electrons) are made to follow a curved trajectory in a particle accelerator, or when these particles undergo comparable accelerations in nature. Due to effects that can be derived from special relativity, synchrotron radiation is densely concentrated and very intense. These properties, together with the fact that it is very easy to produce synchrotron radiation with a clearly defined frequency, make this type of radiation a valuable tool for research not only in basic physics, but also in biology and medicine. When it was first discovered, synchrotron radiation was an (annoying!) side effect, observable at particle accelerators which were used for research into the basic properties of elementary particles. Nowadays, there are many accelerators whose main purposes is the production of this radiation! For a list of important European Synchrotrons, have a look at > FIS-Landschaft, with BESSY II, PETRA III or the ESRF. In the US, you can find the > National Synchrotron Light Source II at the Brookhaven National Laboratory

radiation

In a general sense: Collective name for all phenomena in which energy is transported through space in the form of waves or particles. In a more restricted sense, the word is often used synonymously with electromagnetic radiation.

Dictionary

synchrotron radiation

Further Articles

Tag Cloud