CERN'S 400 GeV Super Proton Synchrotron

Abstract

Macroengineering projects are not normally constructed with accuracies measured in fractions of a millimetre nor do they take the curvature of the Earth into consideration. CERN's Super Proton Synchrotron near Geneva, Switzerland, required both and yet it was built within the time and cost estimated. When commissioned it worked first time and has since then exceeded expectations. Here the details of its interdisciplinary design and construction are recorded by the Project Team who were responsible for this success story. The articles deal with the magnets, the vacuum system, the radiofrequency acceleration system, the civil engineering aspects of the 6.9 km tunnel, its survey and alignment, the voltage stabilization of the power supply the cooling water system, and last but by no means least the novel computer control philosophy and techniques which may well find application in other complex projects needing monitoring and control.