The particle detector

When colliding high energy particles it is possible to create the conditions necessary to explore the interior of matter and to create new types of matter. To observe and identify the well known particles and also the possibly new states of matter, very sophisticated detectors are needed. The collision points are surrounded by several particle detectors in order to observe the particles produced in the collision. The type of produced particles, their energy and direction reveal the secrets of the collision mechanism and the world of the interior of matter. The aim of the complex system of detectors surrounding the collision point is to:

identify the particles
determine their energy
determine their direction

Different type of detectors
The particle detector is generally highly specialised. Normally it gives information on either the direction of the particle, the energy or the identity. A complete experiment therefore consists of a large number of detectors, each of them having a well-defined task. Combining the information from all of them will produce a detailed picture of what happened in the particle collision. There are two main types of particle detectors:

track detectors to determine the trajectory of charged particles
calorimeters to determine the energy of both charged and neutral particles

There exists a variety of different track detectors and calorimeters with different geometries and performances.