linear accelerator
an accelerator in which particles are propelled in straight paths by the use of alternating electric voltages that are timed in such a way that the particles receive increasing increments of energy.
Origin of linear accelerator
1- Also called linac.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use linear accelerator in a sentence
An early model of the linear accelerator also gave a beam of heavy positive ions at high energies.
A Brief History of Element Discovery, Synthesis, and Analysis | Glen W. WatsonIt is called a linear accelerator because it accelerates particles in a straight line.
A Brief History of Element Discovery, Synthesis, and Analysis | Glen W. WatsonAnother instrument, the heavy-ion linear accelerator (Hilac), accelerates ions as heavy as neon to about 15% the speed of light.
A Brief History of Element Discovery, Synthesis, and Analysis | Glen W. Watson
British Dictionary definitions for linear accelerator
an accelerator in which charged particles are accelerated along a linear path by potential differences applied to a number of electrodes along their path: Sometimes shortened to: linac
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for linear accelerator
A type of particle accelerator that accelerates charged subatomic particles, such as protons and electrons, in a straight line by means of alternating negative and positive impulses from electric fields. Linear accelerators were largely supplanted by cyclotrons and other architectures that require less path length to achieve the same or higher particle velocities. See Note at particle accelerator.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Browse