The Large Hadron electron Collider as a bridge project for CERN

Ahmadova, F.; Rojo, J.; Britzger, D.; Holzer, B.; Cooper-Sarkar, A. M.; André, K.; Papaphilippou, Y.; Giuli, F.; Hammou, E.; Schott, M.; Staśto, A. M.; Behnke, O.; Forthomme, L.; Polini, A.; Klein, U.; Kostka, P.; D'Hondt, J.; Fischer, O.; Piotrzkowski, K.; Khanpour, H.; Paukkunen, H.; Newman, P. R.; Boonekamp, M.; Wang, C.; Brüning, O.; Tentori, S.; Mäntysaari, H.; Stocchi, A.; Mellado, B.; Lappi, T.; Osborne, J. A.; Olness, F. I.; Armesto, N.; D'Onofrio, M.; Schumann, S.; Bud, T. A.; Schwanenberger, C.; Azuelos, G.; Gwenlan, C.; Bonvini, M.; Yamazaki, Y.; Tevio, M.

Preprint

PUBDB-2025-05804

The Large Hadron electron Collider as a bridge project for CERN

Ahmadova, F. ; André, K. ; Armesto, N. (Corresponding author) ; Azuelos, G. ; Behnke, O.DESY* ; Boonekamp, M. ; Bonvini, M. ; Britzger, D.Extern* ; Brüning, O. ; Bud, T. A. ; Cooper-Sarkar, A. M.DESY* ; D'Hondt, J. ; D'Onofrio, M. ; Fischer, O. ; Forthomme, L. ; Giuli, F. ; Gwenlan, C.Extern* ; Hammou, E. ; Holzer, B. ; Khanpour, H. ; Klein, U.Extern* ; Kostka, P.DESY* ; Lappi, T. ; Mäntysaari, H. ; Mellado, B. ; Newman, P. R.Extern* ; Olness, F. I. ; Osborne, J. A. ; Papaphilippou, Y. ; Paukkunen, H. ; Piotrzkowski, K.Extern* ; Polini, A.Extern* ; Rojo, J. ; Schott, M. ; Schumann, S. ; Schwanenberger, C.DESY* ; Staśto, A. M. ; Stocchi, A. ; Tentori, S. ; Tevio, M. ; Wang, C. ; Yamazaki, Y.

2025

[10.3204/PUBDB-2025-05804]

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Report No.: arXiv:2503.17727

Abstract: The LHeC is the project for delivering electron-nucleon collisions at CERN using the HL-LHC beams. An Energy Recovery Linac in racetrack configuration will provide 50 GeV electrons to achieve centre-of-mass energies around 1 TeV/nucleon and instantaneous luminosities around $10^{34}$ cm$^{-2}$s$^{-1}$. The LHeC program elaborated in the CDR of 2021 included a phase with concurrent operation of electron-hadron and hadron-hadron collisions, followed by a standalone phase of electron-hadron collisions only. In view of the current HL-LHC schedule, in this paper we have examined the possibilities of a program after the regular HL-LHC program with only electron-proton operation. In this operation mode, the LHeC would serve as an impactful bridge project between major colliders at CERN. The standalone physics program comprises electroweak, Higgs, top-quark, BSM and strong-interaction physics. In addition, it empowers the physics analyses at the HL-LHC by retrofitting measurements and searches with significantly more precise knowledge of the proton structure and $α_s$. The accelerator technology deployed in the Energy Recovery Linac for the LHeC is a major stepping-stone for the performance, cost reduction and training for future colliders. The capital investments in the LHeC electron accelerator can be reused in a cost-efficient way as the injector for the FCC-ee. Finally, data from the LHeC are essential to enable the physics potential of any new high-energy hadron collider. The operational plan of 6 years easily fits in the period between two major colliders at CERN. Similar to the LHeC empowering the HL-LHC physics program, the FCC-eh would be an impactful addition to the FCC physics program.

Note: 34 pages, LaTeX, 23 figures, to be annexed to the submission to the European Strategy for Particle Physics; v2: authors and references added, misprints corrected; v3: kappa3 plots updated

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