Particle accelerator

n.

1.

(Physics) A large and expensive scientific instrument used by physicists to accelerate elementary particles (such as protons or electrons) to speeds near that of light, for the purpose of investigating the fundamental properties of matter; sometimes also called an atom smasher, since the particles thus accelerated are often directed at targets of atoms which are fragmented by the impact into their more fundamental component particles.

Noun

1.

particle accelerator - a scientific instrument that increases the kinetic energy of charged particles Synonyms: atom smasher, accelerator

accelerator, atom smasher, betatron, charge-exchange accelerator, Cockcroft and Walton accelerator, Cockcroft and Walton voltage multiplier, Cockcroft-Walton accelerator, Cockcroft-Walton voltage multiplier, collider, cyclotron, induction accelerator, linac, linear accelerator, scientific instrument, storage ring