beam crossing

{{Short description|Particle collision from opposite directions}}

{{More citations needed|date=March 2025}}

A beam crossing in a particle collider occurs when two packets of particles, going in opposite directions, reach the same point in space.{{Cite web |title=Colliding-beam storage ring {{!}} Particle Acceleration & Physics Research {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/technology/colliding-beam-storage-ring |access-date=2025-03-17 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}} Most of the particles in each packet cross each other, but a few may collide, producing other particles that may be observed in a particle detector. In a linear collider there is only one location where beam crossings occur, while in a modern accelerator ring there are a few locations (LHC, for example, has four); it is at these points that detectors are placed.