An accelerator is a laboratory machine that produces energetic beams of sub-atomic particles. Inside, strong electric and magnetic fields are used to extract the nuclei from the centers of atoms. By using special field configurations, many nuclei can be gathered together and formed into a beam. Electric fields accelerate the beam until, in some cases, it is traveling at almost the speed of light.
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| Take a historic tour of the Indiana University Cyclotron's construction.
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At IUCF, beams made of protons, the nuclei of hydrogen, are used to bombard a beryllium target and produce neutrons, another sub-atomic particle found in nuclei. Neutrons carry no electrical charge, which allows them to penetrate materials unimpeded. The neutrons at IUCF are slowed down or moderated after they are produced, making them sensitive to a material's molecular structure.
Experiments using neutrons can reveal the shape of proteins, show molecular arrangements in a crystal, or even make radiographic images. Beyond the use of neutrons to study materials, IUCF is engaged in developing the technologies needed to moderate, focus, and detect neutrons and to utilize their intrinsic spin as a tool for material analysis.
IUCF's first accelerators were cyclotrons, each with four large electromagnets to hold the beam in place while it accelerates. The proton beam from these machines is used for medical treatments, especially the irradiation of cancerous tumors at the Midwest Proton Radiotherapy Institute, a medical clinic housed inside the present building. Two beam lines from the cyclotrons were built with support from NASA and are used to test components that will be flown in space.
