Un demi-siècle d’accélérateurs de particules

In a lively historical account Pierre Marin tells of the extraordinary progress made in accelerator physics since World War II. He focuses mainly on the history of French accelerators which evolved from small electrostatic accelerators purchased abroad to complex and powerful storage rings and colliders built by French engineers and physicists. He shows how these machines served not only particle physicists, but also researchers working with synchrotron light. He recalls how these two scientific communities with such different backgrounds learned how to work together. Who could have written this story better than Pierre Marin_? He was an accelerator physicist, and a project leader who played a key role in storage ring R&D, as well as in accelerator construction and operation. He describes the international context of the period, and relates the discussions on scientific policy issues of the time. He tells us about the technical challenges to be overcome and discusses the question of maintaining the balance between national development and international involvement. A number of important yet unknown features of this scientific adventure are related. This short history also includes his thoughts about the gestation of large scientific instruments which, no doubt, will interest researchers involved in « big science ».