Project-X is a proposed high-intensity
proton
A proton is a stable subatomic particle, symbol , H+, or 1H+ with a positive electric charge of +1 ''e'' elementary charge. Its mass is slightly less than that of a neutron and 1,836 times the mass of an electron (the proton–electron mass ...
accelerator complex which is to be built at the
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. It is planned to produce beams of different energies up to 8
GeV GEV may refer to:
* ''G.E.V.'' (board game), a tabletop game by Steve Jackson Games
* Ashe County Airport, in North Carolina, United States
* Gällivare Lapland Airport, in Sweden
* Generalized extreme value distribution
* Gev Sella, Israeli-South ...
for precision experiments involving
kaons and
muons. The complex can also be used to create a high-intensity
neutrino beam for
neutrino oscillation experiments such as
NOνA and the
Long Baseline Neutrino Experiment. Project-X will be based on
superconducting RF components such as those developed for the
International Linear Collider
The International Linear Collider (ILC) is a proposed linear particle accelerator. It is planned to have a collision energy of 500 GeV initially, with the possibility for a later upgrade to 1000 GeV (1 TeV). Although early proposed ...
.
Immediate plans are for
cost-effective upgrades in proton
luminosity
Luminosity is an absolute measure of radiated electromagnetic power (light), the radiant power emitted by a light-emitting object over time. In astronomy, luminosity is the total amount of electromagnetic energy emitted per unit of time by a st ...
referred to as the
Proton Improvement Plan-II.
[
] More future-thinking proposals see Project X as laying the groundwork for a possible
Muon collider at the Fermilab site.
Background
Project X is a long range plan to bring accelerators at Fermilab campus to new frontiers. The plan for accelerators focuses on two of the three frontiers that are long-term plans of Fermilab. In the intensity frontier, the new high-intensity accelerators will support experiments that require intense particle beams to understand particles such as neutrinos, muons, kaons, and nuclei. In the energy frontier, the accelerators will support the detection of new particles and forces with potential future projects such as a multi-TeV
Muon Collider.
Stages
The immediate plan of Project X is to focus on the intensity frontier. The project is broken down into 3 stages. Stage one includes upgrades to existing facilities to support immediate experiments. This stage has translated into work done in the Proton Improvement Plan. Stage two includes delivery of three concurrent beam levels: 2.9 MW at 3 GeV; 50–200 kW at 8 GeV and 2.3 MW at 60–120 GeV. Stage three is to build next generation accelerators as the front end to the energy frontier based on international collaboration in projects such as the
Neutrino Factory and Muon Collider.
References
External links
Project X public website
Fermilab
{{US-stub