Images of Big Bang experiments inside particle accelerators at CERN

 Boffins in Geneva, Switzerland, have been producing spectacularly colourful results while recreating sub-atomic explosions – like the one that may have happened around the time of the big bang – using atom-sized particles of lead. Above, particle tracks from the first stable run of lead ion collisions seen by the ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) detector.

 The scientists shoot the particles through a 16-mile long accelerator called CERN at the speed of light. And when the particles collide together in a vacuum colder than -271 Celsius, they put on a spectacular show. Above, particle tracks from the first lead ion collision as seen by the ALICE (A Large Ion Collider .

The construction of ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) for the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), CERN (the European particle physics laboratory).

Yorkshire-born particle physicist and CERN spokesperson Christine Sutton said: “When two lead-ions collide basic particles like pions – one of the basic particles that make up atoms – are expelled. Sub-atomic particles such as these include the basic building blocks of atoms and are common in the universe”.

“By studying these we can learn more about what the universe is made from and perhaps one day how it all began,” adds Christine Sutton. “We measure what we call tracks – which we look at like animal tracks to trace the presence and movement of particles. You can’t see the particles themselves but these trails are left behind – like the contrails of an aeroplane. The traces are coloured in by physicists to represent energy, for example. Blue can represent higher energies, red lower ones, like the colours in flames”.

 CERN is built to handle unimaginable forces. When scientists use the 9,300 magnets to blast two super-speeding lead ions together the heat generated is 100,000 times hotter than the sun. But for the magnets to work helium superfluid is used to keep the accelerator ring chilled to -271 Celsius.

Lead ion collisions taking place.

A simulated computer display of a particle collision within the ATLAS (A Toroidal LHC ApparatuS) detector.

A collection of tracks left by subatomic particles in a bubble chamber. A bubble chamber is a container filled with liquid hydrogen which is superheated – momentarily raised above its normal boiling point by a sudden drop in pressure in the container. Any charged particle passing through the liquid in this state leaves behind a trail of tiny bubbles as the liquid boils in its wake. These bubbles are seen as fine tracks, showing the characteristic paths of different types of particle.

Simulated computer display of a particle collision within the ATLAS detector at CERN.

Particle tracks from the first stable run of lead ion collisions seen by the ALICE (a large ion collider experiment) detector at CERN.

Simulated computer display of a particle collision within the ATLAS detector.

Electromagnetic particle shower where particle tracks (moving from bottom to top) show multiple electron-positron pairs created from the energy of a high-energy gamma ray photon produced by a neutrino collision.

Simulated computer display of the decay of a Higgs boson in the CMS (compact muon solenoid) detector at CERN.

Cross-section through the ALICE detector showing a simulation of particle detection.

Simulated computer display of a lead ion collision, seen by the ALICE.

Simulated computer display of a particle collision within the ATLAS detector at CERN.

At the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) on Long Island, New York scientists produced this image of tracks of as many as 1000 charged subatomic particles created in a head-on collision of gold ions in the STAR detector at RHIC (the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider).

http://etfew.com/images-of-big-bang-experiments-inside-particle-accelerators-at-cern/ 

WHAT IS SOLAR POWER?

Solar power is a viable alternative to fossil fuels and some alternative energy sources, as it gives off no carbon dioxide waste and uses the natural energy from our sun to generate electricity. After the lifetime of the panel, the materials that were used to make it could be recycled as no material is used in the energy generating process. There is also a lot of room for solar power to be used in the development of 3rd world economies, as it is extremely cost effective in the long run.

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HOW DOES IT WORK?
Solar panels have always been thought to be very expensive as it used to be made only from the purest silicon. Solar power has in many ways been eliminated as a viable option as a result of its high manufacturing costs. But a recent breakthrough in the hunt to find an alternative to silicon has dramatically decreased the price of solar power, and also increased it’s effectiveness. This achievement came from South Africa’s own Professor Vivian Alberts from the Johannesburg University and his team of physicists, who have formulated a new procedure of making solar panels using copper-indium-gallium-diselenide (CIGS).

The production of CIGS solar panels is very complex and any slight deviation from the purest, high-quality elements can result in an ineffective solar cell.
1. Three metals: copper (Cu), gallium (Ga), and indium (In), have to be formed in an extremely pure alloy.
2. Next, the alloy that was formed needs to be converted into an equally pure semiconductor. This is done by adding selenium (Se)into the alloy. This creates a completely new crystal structure forming the CIGS layer of the cell.
3. Then a buffer layer of other semi-conductors are laid carefully on the CIGS layer.
4. The cell is then finished off by attaching conductive electrical contacts (usually molybdenum) on either side

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IS IT RENEWABLE?
Solar power is one of the most renewable ways of energy production. The sun as the energy source is, at least in the foreseeable future, endless and will keep providing us with power. There is no way for us to use up the sun and we don’t even have to replenish it. Therefore solar power is definitely a renewable means of energy production.

APPLICATIONS OF SOLAR POWER
The use of CIGS in the productions of solar panels as an alternative to silicon, gas been undergoing research since 1974, but scientists struggled to find reliable, repeatable, commercially affordable processes to produce this type of solar panel. Professor Alberts revolutionised this industry in inventing an entirely new procedure based on the way that the atoms behave from the beginning to the end of the process. His procedure is going to be implemented in the first full-scale CGIS production plant that uses this procedure, currently being built in Germany by IFE Solar Systems a company that has invested R500-million in this South African invention.

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ADVANTAGES
· The sun’s energy is free to use, which makes the process cheaper.
· The process is completely non-polluting.
· Can be used in a wide variety of locations the world over. Wherever there is sun.

DISADVANTAGES
· Cost of the panels and equipment is expensive. This will, however, become cheaper in time.
· Can only work when the sun is available; therefore weather dependant.

SOLAR POWER IN SOUTH AFRICA
South Africa is at the forefront of developing new CIGS technology (see above). The country does not however make enough use of its own technology. This is due in part to the costs involved but with price decreasing there is great possibility for solar panels to be installed throughout the country.

INTERESTING INFORMATION
Less than one micrometer of CIGS in the form of a thin film absorbs more than 99% incident solar energy, compared to the 350 micrometers of silicon to absorb the same amount. CIGS is therefore very effective, as it can be used in a flexible form, making the possibilities for its use in the production of other products endless.

Link : http://etfew.com/what-is-solar-power/