CERN's current and future accelerators
Linear accelerator 2
Linac 2 is the starting point for the protons used in physics experiments at CERN
Linear accelerator 3
Linac 3 is the starting point for the ions used in physics experiments at CERN
Linear accelerator 4
Linac 4 boosts negative hydrogen ions to high energies. It will become the source of proton beams for the Large Hadron Collider in 2018
The Antiproton Decelerator
Not all accelerators increase a particle's speed. The AD slows down antiprotons so they can be used to study antimatter
The Large Hadron Collider
The 27-kilometre LHC is the world's largest particle accelerator. It collides protons or lead ions at energies approaching the speed of light
The Low Energy Ion Ring
LEIR takes long pulses of lead ions from Linac 3 and transforms them into the short, dense bunches suitable for injection to the Large Hadron Collider
The Proton Synchrotron
A workhorse of CERN's accelerator complex, the Proton Synchrotron has juggled many types of particle since it was first switched on in 1959
The Proton Synchrotron Booster
Four superimposed synchrotron rings receive protons from the linear accelerator, boost them to 800 MeV and inject them into the Proton Synchrotron
The Super Proton Synchrotron
The second-largest machine in CERN’s accelerator complex provides a stepping stone between the Proton Synchrotron and the LHC