Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider
At Brookhaven National Lab's Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider,
physicists from around the world study what the universe may
have looked like in the first few moments after its creation.
What scientists learn from RHIC may help us understand more
about why the physical world works the way it does, from the
smallest subatomic particles, to the largest stars.
Alternating Gradient Synchrotron
Since 1960, the Alternating Gradient Synchrotron (AGS) has been one of the world's premier particle accelerators, well known for the three Nobel Prizes won as a result of research performed there.
The AGS name is derived from the concept of alternating gradient focusing, in which the field gradients of the accelerator's 240 magnets are successively alternated inward and outward, permitting particles to be focused in both the horizontal and vertical plane at the same time. Capable of accelerating 70 trillion protons with every pulse, and heavy ions such as gold and iron, the AGS receives protons and other ions from the AGS Booster and delivers them to the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider after acceleration.
