A synchrotron is a type of particle accelerator that produces highly focused beams of light, known as synchrotron radiation, through the acceleration of charged particles, typically electrons. It consists of a circular or ring-shaped structure where these particles are accelerated to nearly the speed of light. The design of a synchrotron allows for continuous acceleration and bending of the particle beam, producing radiation as they travel along curved paths due to their charged nature.
Most important application: produce X-rays for X-ray crystallography.
Note however that the big experiments at CERN, like the Large Hadron Collider, are also synchrotrons.
List of facilities: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_synchrotron_radiation_facilities
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