LENGTH-COMPENSATION SYSTEMS: BELLOWS

Some of the LHC’s vacuum chambers operate at cryogenic temperatures (-271°C), while others, during the so-called bake-out, are heated up to 250°C. Because a material expands or shrinks when its temperature increases or decreases, the LHC vacuum chambers can change considerably in length. To compensate for relative displacements between two vacuum chambers that undergo such length changes, various types of wavy-shaped, flexible elements called bellows are installed in the LHC.