GENEVA, Switzerland— Pfeiffer Vacuum is supplying turbo pumps and turbo pumping stations for use in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The world’s largest and most powerful particle physics research device is operated by the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).
The LHC has a circumference of 27 kilometers. It is used for learning what the universe is made of and researching the basic constituents of matter. Scientists collide proton and ion beams at nearly the speed of light. The accelerated particles travel in beam lines, which require ultra-high vacuum conditions.