IPhO 2016 · Theory problem 3

Large Hadron Collider

Please read the general instructions in the separate envelope before you start this problem.

In this task, the physics of the particle accelerator LHC (Large Hadron Collider) at CERN is discussed. CERN is the world's largest particle physics laboratory. Its main goal is to get insight into the fundamental laws of nature. Two beams of particles are accelerated to high energies, guided around the accelerator ring by a strong magnetic field and then made to collide with each other. The protons are not spread uniformly around the circumference of the accelerator, but they are clustered in so-called bunches. The resulting particles generated by collisions are observed with large detectors. Some parameters of the LHC can be found in table 1.

LHC ring
Circumference of ring \(26659\,\mathrm{m}\)
Number of bunches per proton beam \(2808\)
Number of protons per bunch \(1.15\times10^{11}\)
Proton beams
Energy of protons \(7.00\,\mathrm{TeV}\)
Centre of mass energy \(14.0\,\mathrm{TeV}\)

Table 1: Typical numerical values of relevant LHC parameters.

Particle physicists use convenient units for the energy, momentum and mass: The energy is measured in electron volts [eV]. By definition, \(1\,\mathrm{eV}\) is the amount of energy gained by a particle with elementary charge, \(e\), moved through a potential difference of one volt (\(1\,\mathrm{eV}=1.602\cdot10^{-19}\,\mathrm{kg\,m^2s^{-2}}\)).

The momentum is measured in units of \(\mathrm{eV}/c\) and the mass in units of \(\mathrm{eV}/c^2\), where \(c\) is the speed of light in vacuum. Since \(1\,\mathrm{eV}\) is a very small quantity of energy, particle physicists often use MeV (\(1\,\mathrm{MeV}=10^6\,\mathrm{eV}\)), GeV (\(1\,\mathrm{GeV}=10^9\,\mathrm{eV}\)) or TeV (\(1\,\mathrm{TeV}=10^{12}\,\mathrm{eV}\)).

Part A deals with the acceleration of protons or electrons. Part B is concerned with the identification of particles produced in the collisions at CERN.

Part A. LHC accelerator (6 points)

Acceleration:

Assume that the protons have been accelerated by a voltage \(V\) such that their velocity is very close to the speed of light and neglect any energy loss due to radiation or collisions with other particles.

A.1 — 0.7pt

Find the exact expression for the final velocity \(v\) of the protons as a function of the accelerating voltage \(V\), and physical constants.

A design for a future experiment at CERN plans to use the protons from the LHC and to collide them with electrons which have an energy of \(60.0\,\mathrm{GeV}\).

A.2 — 0.8pt

For particles with high energy and low mass the relative deviation \(\Delta=(c-v)/c\) of the final velocity \(v\) from the speed of light is very small. Find a first order approximation for \(\Delta\) and calculate \(\Delta\) for electrons with an energy of \(60.0\,\mathrm{GeV}\)using the accelerating voltage \(V\) and physical constants.

We now return to the protons in the LHC. Assume that the beam pipe has a circular shape.

A.3 — 1.0pt

Derive an expression for the uniform magnetic flux density \(B\) necessary to keep the proton beam on a circular track. The expression should only contain the energy of the protons \(E\), the circumference \(L\), fundamental constants and numbers. You may use suitable approximations if their effect is smaller than precision given by the least number of significant digits.

Calculate the magnetic flux density \(B\) for a proton energy of \(E=7.00\,\mathrm{TeV}\), neglecting interactions between the protons.

Radiated Power:

An accelerated charged particle radiates energy in the form of electromagnetic waves. The radiated power \(P_{\mathrm{rad}}\) of a charged particle that circulates with a constant angular velocity depends only on its acceleration \(a\), its charge \(q\), the speed of light \(c\) and the permittivity of free space \(\varepsilon_0\).

A.4 — 1.0pt

Use dimensional analysis to find an expression for the radiated power \(P_{\mathrm{rad}}\).

The real formula for the radiated power contains a factor \(1/(6\pi)\); moreover, a full relativistic derivation gives an additional multiplicative factor \(\gamma^4\), with \(\gamma=(1-v^2/c^2)^{-1/2}\).

A.5 — 1.0pt

Calculate \(P_{\mathrm{tot}}\), the total radiated power of the LHC, for a proton energy of \(E=7.00\,\mathrm{TeV}\) (Note table 1). You may use suitable approximations.

Linear Acceleration:

At CERN, protons at rest are accelerated by a linear accelerator of length \(d=30.0\,\mathrm{m}\) through a potential difference of \(V=500\,\mathrm{MV}\). Assume that the electrical field is homogeneous. A linear accelerator consists of two plates as sketched in Figure 1.

A.6 — 1.5pt

Determine the time \(T\) that the protons take to pass through this field.

Figure 1

Figure 1: Sketch of an accelerator module.

Part B. Particle Identification (4 points)

Time of flight:

It is important to identify the high energy particles that are generated in the collision in order to interpret the interaction process. A simple method is to measure the time \((t)\) that a particle with known momentum needs to pass a length \(l\) in a so-called Time-of-Flight (ToF) detector. Typical particles which are identified in the detector, together with their masses, are listed in table 2.

Particle Mass \([\mathrm{MeV}/c^2]\)
Deuteron \(1876\)
Proton \(938\)
charged Kaon \(494\)
charged Pion \(140\)
Electron \(0.511\)

Table 2: Particles and their masses.

Figure 2

Figure 2: Schematic view of a time-of-flight detector.

B.1 — 0.8pt

Express the particle mass \(m\) in terms of of the momentum \(p\), the flight length \(l\) and the flight time \(t\), assuming that particles have elementary charge \(e\) and travel with velocity close to \(c\) on straight tracks in the ToF detector and that they travel perpendicular to the two detection planes (see figure 2).

B.2 — 0.7pt

Calculate the minimal length \(l\) of a ToF detector that allows to safely distinguish a charged kaon from a charged pion, given both their momenta are measured to be \(1.00\,\mathrm{GeV}/c\). For a good separation it is required that the difference in the time-of-flight is larger than three times the time resolution of the detector. The typical resolution of a ToF detector is \(150\,\mathrm{ps}\) (\(1\,\mathrm{ps}=10^{-12}\,\mathrm{s}\)).

In the following, particles produced in a typical LHC detector are identified in a two stage detector consisting of a tracking detector and a ToF detector. Figure 3 shows the setup in the plane transverse and longitudinal to the proton beams. Both detectors are tubes surrounding the interaction region with the beam passing in the middle of the tubes. The tracking detector measures the trajectory of a charged particle which passes through a magnetic field whose direction is parallel to the proton beams. The radius \(r\) of the trajectory allows one to determine the transverse momentum \(p_{\mathrm{T}}\) of the particle. Since the collision time is known the ToF detector only needs one tube to measure the flight time (time between the collision and the detection in the ToF tube). This ToF tube is situated just outside the tracking chamber. For this task you may assume that all particles created by the collision travel perpendicular to the proton beams, which means that the created particles have no momentum along the direction of the proton beams.

Figure 3

Figure 3 : Experimental setup for particle identification with a tracking chamber and a ToF detector. Both detectors are tubes surrounding the collision point in the middle. Left : transverse view perpendicular to the beamline. Right : longitudinal view parallel to the beam line. The particle is travelling perpendicular to the beam line.

B.3 — 1.7pt

Express the particle mass in terms of the magnetic flux density \(B\), the radius \(R\) of the ToF tube, fundamental constants and the measured quantities: radius \(r\) of the track and time-of-flight \(t\).

We detected four particles and want to identify them. The magnetic flux density in the tracking detector was \(B=0.500\,\mathrm{T}\). The radius \(R\) of the ToF tube was \(3.70\,\mathrm{m}\). Here are the measurements (\(1\,\mathrm{ns}=10^{-9}\,\mathrm{s}\)):

Particle Radius of the trajectory \(r\) [m] Time of flight \(t\) [ns]
A \(5.10\) \(20\)
B \(2.94\) \(14\)
C \(6.06\) \(18\)
D \(2.31\) \(25\)

B.4 — 0.8pt

Identify the four particles by calculating their mass.

General Data Sheet

Speed of light in vacuum \(c\) \(=299\,792\,458\,\mathrm{m\cdot s^{-1}}\)
Vacuum permeability (magnetic constant) \(\mu_0\) \(=4\pi\times10^{-7}\,\mathrm{kg\cdot m\cdot A^{-2}\cdot s^{-2}}\)
Vacuum permittivity (electrical constant) \(\varepsilon_0\) \(=8.854\,187\,817\times10^{-12}\,\mathrm{A^2\cdot s^4\cdot kg^{-1}\cdot m^{-3}}\)
Elementary charge \(e\) \(=1.602\,176\,620\,8(98)\times10^{-19}\,\mathrm{A\cdot s}\)
Mass of the electron \(m_{\mathrm e}\) \(=9.109\,383\,56(11)\times10^{-31}\,\mathrm{kg}\)
\(=0.510\,998\,946\,1(31)\,\dfrac{\mathrm{MeV}}{c^2}\)
Mass of the proton \(m_{\mathrm p}\) \(=1.672\,621\,898(21)\times10^{-27}\,\mathrm{kg}\)
\(=938.272\,081\,3(58)\,\dfrac{\mathrm{MeV}}{c^2}\)
Mass of the neutron \(m_{\mathrm n}\) \(=1.674\,927\,471(21)\times10^{-27}\,\mathrm{kg}\)
\(=939.565\,413\,3(58)\,\dfrac{\mathrm{MeV}}{c^2}\)
Unified atomic mass unit \(u\) \(=1.660\,539\,040(20)\times10^{-27}\,\mathrm{kg}\)
Rydberg constant \(R_\infty\) \(=10\,973\,731.568\,508(65)\,\mathrm{m^{-1}}\)
Universal constant of gravitation \(G\) \(=6.674\,08(31)\times10^{-11}\,\mathrm{m^3\cdot kg^{-1}\cdot s^{-2}}\)
Acceleration due to gravity (in Zurich) \(g\) \(=9.81\,\mathrm{m\cdot s^{-2}}\)
Planck’s constant \(h\) \(=6.626\,070\,040(81)\times10^{-34}\,\mathrm{kg\cdot m^2\cdot s^{-1}}\)
Avogadro number \(N_{\mathrm A}\) \(=6.022\,140\,857(74)\times10^{23}\,\mathrm{mol^{-1}}\)
Molar gas constant \(R\) \(=8.314\,4598(48)\,\mathrm{kg\cdot m^2\cdot s^{-2}\cdot mol^{-1}\cdot K^{-1}}\)
Molar mass constant \(M_{\mathrm u}\) \(=1\times10^{-3}\,\mathrm{kg\cdot mol^{-1}}\)
Boltzmann constant \(k_{\mathrm B}\) \(=1.380\,648\,52(79)\times10^{-23}\,\mathrm{kg\cdot m^2\cdot s^{-2}\cdot K^{-1}}\)
Stefan-Boltzmann constant \(\sigma\) \(=5.670\,367(13)\times10^{-8}\,\mathrm{kg\cdot s^{-3}\cdot K^{-4}}\)

Official English text of the problem.

Answers

  • A.1: For acceleration from rest, \[ \boxed{v=c\sqrt{1-\left(1+\frac{eV}{m_{\mathrm p}c^2}\right)^{-2}}.} \]

  • A.2: \[ \boxed{\Delta\simeq\frac{1}{2}\left(1+\frac{eV}{mc^2}\right)^{-2} \simeq\frac{m^2c^4}{2e^2V^2}.} \] For the \(60.0\,\mathrm{GeV}\) electrons, \[ \boxed{\Delta=3.63\times10^{-11}.} \]

  • A.3: \[ \boxed{B=\frac{2\pi}{ecL}\sqrt{E^2-m_{\mathrm p}^2c^4} \simeq\frac{2\pi E}{ecL}=5.50\,\mathrm T.} \]

  • A.4: \[ \boxed{P_{\mathrm{rad}}=C\,\frac{q^2a^2}{\varepsilon_0c^3},} \] where dimensional analysis cannot determine the dimensionless constant \(C\).

  • A.5: Including both proton beams, \[ \boxed{P_{\mathrm{tot}}=5.12\,\mathrm{kW}.} \]

  • A.6: \[ \boxed{T=\frac{d}{c}\sqrt{1+\frac{2m_{\mathrm p}c^2}{eV}} =2.18\times10^{-7}\,\mathrm s=0.218\,\mu\mathrm s.} \]

  • B.1: \[ \boxed{m=\frac{p}{c}\sqrt{\left(\frac{ct}{l}\right)^2-1}.} \]

  • B.2: The threshold length is \[ \boxed{l_{\mathrm{crit}}=1.27739\ldots\,\mathrm m.} \] The stated strict separation criterion requires \(l>l_{\mathrm{crit}}\), giving a minimum practical length of approximately \(\boxed{1.28\,\mathrm m}\).

  • B.3: \[ \boxed{ m=\frac{eBr}{c} \sqrt{\left[\frac{ct}{2r\arcsin(R/(2r))}\right]^2-1}. } \]

  • B.4: A: proton, \(m\approx0.94\,\mathrm{GeV}/c^2\); B: charged pion, \(m\approx0.14\,\mathrm{GeV}/c^2\); C: proton, \(m\approx0.94\,\mathrm{GeV}/c^2\); D: charged kaon, \(m\approx0.50\,\mathrm{GeV}/c^2\).

Solution

A.1

For a proton accelerated from rest, conservation of energy gives \[ eV=K=(\gamma-1)m_{\mathrm p}c^2, \qquad \gamma=\frac{1}{\sqrt{1-v^2/c^2}}. \] Thus \[ \gamma=1+\frac{eV}{m_{\mathrm p}c^2}. \] Solving for \(v\), \[ \boxed{ v=c\sqrt{1-\left(1+\frac{eV}{m_{\mathrm p}c^2}\right)^{-2}}. } \] This expression is exact under the assumption of acceleration from rest without energy losses.

A.2

For a particle of mass \(m\), \[ \Delta=1-\frac vc=1-\sqrt{1-\gamma^{-2}}. \] At high energy, \(\gamma^{-2}\ll1\). Using the first-order expansion \[ \sqrt{1-x}=1-\frac{x}{2}+O(x^2), \] we obtain \[ \Delta=\frac{1}{2\gamma^2}+O(\gamma^{-4}). \] In terms of the accelerating voltage, \[ \boxed{ \Delta\simeq\frac12 \left(1+\frac{eV}{mc^2}\right)^{-2}. } \] When \(eV\gg mc^2\), this further reduces to \[ \boxed{\Delta\simeq\frac{m^2c^4}{2e^2V^2}.} \]

Equivalently, using the total energy \(E=\gamma mc^2\), \[ \Delta\simeq\frac12\left(\frac{mc^2}{E}\right)^2. \] For the electrons, \[ m_{\mathrm e}c^2=0.5109989461\,\mathrm{MeV}, \qquad E=60.0\,\mathrm{GeV}=6.00\times10^4\,\mathrm{MeV}, \] so \[ \Delta\simeq \frac12\left(\frac{0.5109989461}{6.00\times10^4}\right)^2 =\boxed{3.63\times10^{-11}}. \]

A.3

Let the circular orbit radius be \[ \rho=\frac{L}{2\pi}. \] The magnetic force changes the direction of the relativistic momentum while leaving its magnitude constant. For uniform circular motion, \[ \left|\frac{d\mathbf p}{dt}\right|=\frac{pv}{\rho}. \] Equating this to the magnetic force, \[ evB=\frac{pv}{\rho}, \] gives \[ B=\frac{p}{e\rho}. \]

The relativistic energy–momentum relation is \[ E^2=p^2c^2+m_{\mathrm p}^2c^4, \] where \(E\) is the total proton energy. Therefore, \[ \boxed{ B=\frac{2\pi}{ecL}\sqrt{E^2-m_{\mathrm p}^2c^4}. } \]

At \(E=7.00\,\mathrm{TeV}\), \[ \frac{m_{\mathrm p}c^2}{E} =\frac{938.2720813\,\mathrm{MeV}}{7.00\times10^6\,\mathrm{MeV}} \approx1.34\times10^{-4}. \] Replacing \(pc\) by \(E\) produces a relative correction of only \[ \frac12\left(\frac{m_{\mathrm p}c^2}{E}\right)^2 \approx8.98\times10^{-9}, \] far below the precision of the given energy. Hence \[ B\simeq\frac{2\pi E}{ecL}. \] Using \(E=7.00\times10^{12}e\,\mathrm J\), \[ B\simeq \frac{2\pi(7.00\times10^{12})} {(299792458)(26659)}\,\mathrm T =\boxed{5.50\,\mathrm T}. \]

A.4

Write \[ P_{\mathrm{rad}}=Cq^\alpha a^\beta c^\delta\varepsilon_0^\eta, \] where \(C\) is dimensionless. Using mass, length, time and charge as base dimensions, \[ [P]=ML^2T^{-3},\quad [q]=Q,\quad [a]=LT^{-2},\quad [c]=LT^{-1}, \] and \[ [\varepsilon_0]=Q^2T^2M^{-1}L^{-3}. \] Matching powers gives \[ -\eta=1,\qquad \alpha+2\eta=0, \] \[ \beta+\delta-3\eta=2,\qquad -2\beta-\delta+2\eta=-3. \] Thus \[ \eta=-1,\qquad \alpha=2,\qquad \beta=2,\qquad \delta=-3. \] Consequently, \[ \boxed{P_{\mathrm{rad}}=C\,\frac{q^2a^2}{\varepsilon_0c^3}.} \] Dimensional analysis determines the dependence on the physical quantities but cannot determine \(C\).

A.5

Including the numerical factor and relativistic correction specified in the problem, one proton radiates \[ P_1=\frac{e^2a^2\gamma^4}{6\pi\varepsilon_0c^3}. \] For circular motion, \[ a=\frac{v^2}{\rho}\simeq\frac{c^2}{\rho}, \qquad \rho=\frac{L}{2\pi}, \qquad \gamma=\frac{E}{m_{\mathrm p}c^2}. \] Hence \[ P_1\simeq \frac{e^2c}{6\pi\varepsilon_0\rho^2} \left(\frac{E}{m_{\mathrm p}c^2}\right)^4. \]

Numerically, \[ \rho=\frac{26659}{2\pi}\,\mathrm m =4242.91\,\mathrm m, \qquad \gamma=\frac{7.00\times10^6}{938.2720813} =7460.52. \] Substitution yields \[ P_1\simeq7.93\times10^{-12}\,\mathrm W. \]

There are two beams, each containing \(2808\) bunches with \(1.15\times10^{11}\) protons per bunch. Thus the total number of protons is \[ N=2(2808)(1.15\times10^{11}) =6.4584\times10^{14}. \] Adding the individual radiated powers, \[ P_{\mathrm{tot}}=NP_1 \simeq5.12467\times10^3\,\mathrm W. \] Therefore, \[ \boxed{P_{\mathrm{tot}}=5.12\,\mathrm{kW}.} \]

A.6

The homogeneous electric field has magnitude \(V/d\), so the force on a proton is constant: \[ F=\frac{eV}{d}. \] Relativistically, the equation of motion is \[ \frac{dp}{dt}=F. \] Since the proton starts from rest, \[ p_{\mathrm f}=FT, \qquad T=\frac{p_{\mathrm f}}{F}. \]

The work done over the accelerator is \(eV\), giving final total energy \[ E_{\mathrm f}=m_{\mathrm p}c^2+eV. \] Therefore, \[ p_{\mathrm f}c =\sqrt{E_{\mathrm f}^2-m_{\mathrm p}^2c^4} =\sqrt{(eV)^2+2eVm_{\mathrm p}c^2}. \] Combining these expressions, \[ T=\frac{d}{eVc} \sqrt{(eV)^2+2eVm_{\mathrm p}c^2}, \] or \[ \boxed{T=\frac{d}{c}\sqrt{1+\frac{2m_{\mathrm p}c^2}{eV}}.} \]

Here \(eV=500\,\mathrm{MeV}\). Thus \[ T= \frac{30.0}{299792458} \sqrt{1+\frac{2(938.2720813)}{500}}\,\mathrm s =\boxed{2.18\times10^{-7}\,\mathrm s}. \] The use of constant force, rather than constant acceleration, accounts for the relativistic change in velocity.

B.1

For the straight path, \[ v=\frac lt. \] Relativistic momentum satisfies \[ p=\gamma mv=\frac{mv}{\sqrt{1-v^2/c^2}}. \] Solving for \(m\), \[ m=\frac pv\sqrt{1-\frac{v^2}{c^2}} =p\sqrt{\frac{t^2}{l^2}-\frac1{c^2}}. \] Therefore, \[ \boxed{m=\frac pc\sqrt{\left(\frac{ct}{l}\right)^2-1}.} \] This expression is exact; no expansion about \(v=c\) is needed.

B.2

Solving the result of B.1 for flight time gives \[ t(m)=\frac lc\sqrt{1+\left(\frac{mc}{p}\right)^2}. \] At equal momentum, the heavier kaon arrives later. Their time difference is \[ t_K-t_\pi =\frac lc \left[ \sqrt{1+\left(\frac{m_Kc}{p}\right)^2} -\sqrt{1+\left(\frac{m_\pi c}{p}\right)^2} \right]. \] The required separation is \[ t_K-t_\pi>3(150\,\mathrm{ps})=450\,\mathrm{ps}. \] The threshold length is therefore \[ l_{\mathrm{crit}} = \frac{3\sigma_t c}{ \sqrt{1+(m_Kc/p)^2} -\sqrt{1+(m_\pi c/p)^2} }, \qquad \sigma_t=150\,\mathrm{ps}. \]

Using \(p=1000\,\mathrm{MeV}/c\), \[ l_{\mathrm{crit}} = \frac{(450\times10^{-12})(299792458)} {\sqrt{1+(494/1000)^2}-\sqrt{1+(140/1000)^2}} \,\mathrm m. \] The dimensionless denominator is \(0.10561117\), yielding \[ \boxed{l_{\mathrm{crit}}=1.27739\ldots\,\mathrm m.} \] Thus \(l\) must exceed this threshold; approximately \(\boxed{1.28\,\mathrm m}\) is required. The exact relativistic expression is used because the kaon's mass is not negligible compared with \(p/c\).

B.3

Because the particle has no momentum parallel to the beamline, its entire momentum is transverse to the magnetic field. As in A.3, \[ p=eBr. \] The magnetic field does no work, so the speed is constant along the circular track.

Let \(\theta\) be the angle swept out about the centre of the trajectory before the particle first reaches the ToF tube. The collision point and detection point are separated by the tube radius \(R\). They are also the endpoints of a chord of the trajectory circle, whose radius is \(r\). Therefore, \[ R=2r\sin\frac{\theta}{2}. \] For the first encounter with the tube, \[ \theta=2\arcsin\frac{R}{2r}, \] and the flight path length is \[ s=r\theta=2r\arcsin\frac{R}{2r}. \] This requires \(r\ge R/2\); a smaller orbit never reaches the tube.

The speed is \[ v=\frac st. \] Using the mass formula from B.1 with the actual path length \(s\), together with \(p=eBr\), \[ m=\frac{eBr}{c}\sqrt{\left(\frac{ct}{s}\right)^2-1}. \] Consequently, \[ \boxed{ m=\frac{eBr}{c} \sqrt{ \left[ \frac{ct}{2r\arcsin(R/(2r))} \right]^2-1 }. } \] The inverse sine is evaluated in radians.

B.4

For each particle, use \[ s=2r\arcsin\frac{3.70\,\mathrm m}{2r}, \qquad p=e(0.500\,\mathrm T)r, \] and \[ m=\frac pc\sqrt{\left(\frac{ct}{s}\right)^2-1}. \]

The momentum conversion follows directly from \(p=eBr\): \[ p\,[\mathrm{GeV}/c] =0.299792458\,B\,[\mathrm T]\,r\,[\mathrm m]. \] Retaining guard digits to compare the calculated masses with Table 2 gives:

Particle Path length \(s\) [m] Momentum \(p\) [MeV/\(c\)] Calculated mass [MeV/\(c^2\)] Identification
A \(3.7864\) \(764.47\) \(938.65\) Proton
B \(4.0019\) \(440.69\) \(139.32\) Charged pion
C \(3.7600\) \(908.37\) \(935.10\) Proton
D \(4.2908\) \(346.26\) \(495.90\) Charged kaon

The small differences from the tabulated masses are consistent with the rounded measurement values. To sensible precision, \[ \boxed{ \begin{aligned} A &: \quad m\approx0.94\,\mathrm{GeV}/c^2 &&\text{proton},\\ B &: \quad m\approx0.14\,\mathrm{GeV}/c^2 &&\text{charged pion},\\ C &: \quad m\approx0.94\,\mathrm{GeV}/c^2 &&\text{proton},\\ D &: \quad m\approx0.50\,\mathrm{GeV}/c^2 &&\text{charged kaon}. \end{aligned} } \]

The solution was checked against the official solution.