ILC

ILC is an acronym used for several organizations and initiatives. The most prominent in science is the International Linear Collider, a proposed high-energy physics facility designed to collide electrons and positrons in a straight line to probe fundamental interactions.

Under the International Linear Collider concept, two linear accelerators would accelerate electrons and positrons in opposite directions and bring them into collision at a dedicated interaction region. The initial design envisions a center-of-mass energy of about 250 GeV, suitable for precision Higgs measurements, with planned upgrades to 500 GeV and potentially up to around 1 TeV. The collider would operate with very clean collision events, enabling precise determinations of particle properties and sensitive tests of the Standard Model and its extensions.

Key technologies in the ILC include superconducting radiofrequency cavities operating at cryogenic temperatures to accelerate beams, and damping rings to reduce beam emittance before acceleration. A sophisticated beam delivery system would focus beams to small spots at the interaction point. The project draws on experience from the TESLA concept and the successful development of superconducting cavities.

Status and outlook: As of the 2020s, the ILC has advanced in design studies and international collaboration but has not progressed to construction or formal funding. Japan has been a leading candidate site, with ongoing discussions among global partners about governance, cost estimates, and schedule. The ILC would complement the Large Hadron Collider by providing high-precision measurements of the Higgs boson, the top quark, and electroweak processes, and could serve as a platform for exploring physics beyond the Standard Model. It faces competition from other proposed lepton colliders, such as CLIC, and from alternative high-energy physics programs.