ELYTT ENERGY designs and manufactures high precision magnets, mostly installed in scientific installations such as particle accelerators, spectrographs, fusion reactors. Our market is mainly located in Europe, in installations such us  LHC at CERN, ALBA synchrotron at Barcelona, ITER fusion reactor…

What is a particle accelerator?

A particle accelerator is a device that accelerates particles for different applications. Those particles can be electrons, protons, heavy ions… depending on the application.

For example, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) to be installed at CERN, will accelerate two proton beams in opposite directions, so that when they have enough energy, a collision between them will be enforced. As result of those collisions, information for basic research physics will be obtained.

ALBA synchrotron to be installed at Barcelona can be mentioned as another example. In this case, a electron beam is accelerated. When the electron beam trajectory is changed, X rays are emitted. Therefore, electron beam trajectory is changed in designated areas where experimental lines using those X rays are installed. In those experimental lines, several experiments are carried out in different fields, such as material analysis.

Basically, a particle accelerator is made of 4 main devices. First, the particle gun, which generates particles such as electrons, ions or protons, depending on the accelerator type and application. The next device is the linac, that accelerates particles in a linear trajectory. The third device is the booster ring, with a circular shape, and where particles are still accelerated. Last, the storage ring, where particle beam follows a circular trajectory to die in experimental lines when desired.

Up to know, we have explained that the particle beam is accelerated, follows a circular trajectory… This is obtained with electric and magnetic fields.

Radio frequency cavities are used for creating a pulsed electric field, so that when the particle beam is reaching the cavity, the electric field attracts the beam, and when the particle beam is out of the cavity, the electric field pushes the beam. This way the beam is accelerated.

Magnets act in a different way. The particle beam follows a linear trajectory. To force the beam to follow a curve, a force must be applied to the beam. This force is due to a magnetic field generated at a dipole.

On the other hand, in some circumstances, the beam has to be focused, that means, to make it narrower and more defined. This is also done with magnetic fields, but, in this case, quadrupole magnets are used.

With a combination of dipoles, quadrupoles and other type of multipoles magnets, the beam is forced to follow non linear trajectories and the beam quality is improved.

For further information, select the following external link www.cern.ch

What is a magnetic spectrograph?

A magnetic spectrograph is similar to a particle accelerator. It is formed by a particle source for ion generation, a linear accelerator for particle acceleration purposes and several magnets for beam focusing and for beam trajectory modification to direct the beam the test line.

The spectrograph itself is contained in one of the test lines, after the interferometer, where the beam impacts against the element to be tested. Particles obtained from the impact go through the magnetic field generated by the magnetic spectrograph. Depending on the speed and mass of each particle, the trajectory followed under the magnetic field is different. At the en of the magnet there is a detector that detects where each particle is after the magnetic field influence. This way, desired material properties are known. This equipment is used for surface physics, environmental sciences, archaeometry…

What is a fusion reactor?

Fusion reaction is the fusion between two light nucleus , obtaining heavier elements and a big amount of energy. This new generation technology allows cleaner energy obtaining than fission. Despite that actually there are no reactors obtaining cost effective fusion energy, a international project called ITER pretends the construction of a fusion reactor to acquire knowledge in this energy. Later step will develop a pre-commercial fusion reactor.

In order to obtain fusion reaction between tritium and deuterium ions, the plasma containing those ions has to be heated to more than 100 millions Celsius degrees. For that, radiofrequency and neutrum injection technologies are used. One of the drawbacks of such a high temperature is that, during heating, the plasma expands and tends to contact the walls, loosing heat. To avoid this heat sink, the plasma must not to touch the walls. This is done confining the plasma with high magnetic fields generated by superconducting coils.

Once the fusion reaction happens, big amount of energy is obtained that, as in fission reactors, is used to obtain steam through heating water. This steam moves several turbines for electrical energy generation.