Eli5: What advancements have been made as a direct result of the use of particle accelerators?

Question

I recently saw a Cleo Abrams video about particle accelerators and the lead scientist said that they use particle accelerators to create the building blocks for future innovations.

I’m sure advancements have been made only because particle accelerators exist but I don’t know any. Can someone highlight a direct influence particle accelerators have on our daily lives?

In: Physics

Answer 1

Compact linear accelerators are used in machines (such as ones from Varian) that deliver radiation to tumors to treat cancer.

Also, lots of x-ray machines have a linear accelerator inside of them. You basically crash a lot of high speed electrons at a solid target like Tungsten or Molybdenum, and that produces x-rays which are used for medical imaging.