Intuitive

• Introduction to the LHC by Matt Strassler
• A Zeptospace Odyssey: A Journey Into the Physics of the LHC by Gian Francesco Giudice

Concrete

• CRASH COURSE IN THE LHC by Nima Arkani-Hamed

Abstract

Functional specification LHC modes

Source

Why is it interesting?

The LHC is currently the most powerful particle collider and discovered the Higgs particle.

“The L.H.C. is considered the best—some would say the only—hope for testing the theories of “new physics” against material reality. Once the collider begins operating at full power—in early 2008, if all goes well— nearly half the particle physicists in the world will be involved in analyzing its four-million-megabyte-per-hour stream of data. Few events in the history of science have had a bigger buildup. It’s been suggested that the L.H.C. will unlock the secrets of the universe or, barring that, prove this ambition to be hopeless.” http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2007/05/14/crash-course

FAQ

see https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/inside-the-large-hadron-collider