Tech UPTechnologyThe LHC opens a new era for physics
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The LHC opens a new era for physics

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The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN , the world's largest particle accelerator, managed to collide two beams of protons at one o'clock today, traveling at a speed of 3.5 TeV (teraelectronvolts) each, obtaining an energy of 7 TeV , very similar to what is calculated to exist in the moments after the Big Bang , the cosmic explosion that started the Universe.

"This is a great day for particle physicists," said CERN Director General Rolf Heuer. "Many people have waited a long time for this moment, but their patience and dedication are beginning to pay off."

With these high collision energies, a new period begins for the LHC, in which it launches? The hunt for dark matter, new forces, new dimensions and the Higgs boson? as Italian physicist Fabiola Gianotti has commented.

Currently, CERN physicists are working on stabilizing the particle beams for best results. The planned plan is to enter a continuous data collection phase for a period of between 18 and 24 months, with a brief technical stop at the end of 2010. After "rediscovering" the already known Standard Model of particles, CERN announces, The experiments will begin the systematic search for the Higgs boson , dubbed the "God particle." It will also try to find out if supersymmetric particles exist .

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