The LHC accelerates protons to a speed of 0.999999991c around a 27km ring. Due to relativistic effects, their mass increases. Given that the magnetic fields used are 8T, calculate this mass. What is the total energy of an LHC beam containing 3e14 protons?

Balancing the centripetal force mv^2/r with the force experienced due to motion in a magnetic field qvB: m = qBr/v = qBC/2piv (C circumference). Putting in numbers: m = 1.83e-23 kg (~11,000 mass of proton at rest!). Energy of beam = Np * 1/2 m v^2 (Np number of protons). Again, using the numbers, we get energy = 2.4e8 J. This is equivalent to the energy a standard car (mass 1.5t) has when traveling at around 1300 mph! (I originally asked this in the question but I went over the character count!).

TD
Answered by Tutor48526 D. Physics tutor

3919 Views

See similar Physics A Level tutors

Related Physics A Level answers

All answers ▸

Define the moment of a couple


A 12V lamp, 36W is switched on for 1 hour. Find the energy supplied by the battery.


A light is shone through a diffraction grating of slit spacing 4.5x10^5 lines per metre. The incident wavelength is 650nm. Find the angle produced by the incident light and the 2nd order maximum.


What is an electron volt?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning