Making a Particle Beam Cutter: Physics Perspective

[acron]

How would one go about making a particle beam cutter? I'm thinking like a powerful laser type cutter.
Please no mechanical engineers, I want a purely physics point of view.

 

[mfb]

Build a powerful accelerator, use it (probably with a plasma window as exit). Beam current is more important than energy and particle type.
But where is the point?

 

[acron]

Build a powerful accelerator, use it (probably with a plasma window as exit). Beam current is more important than energy and particle type.
But where is the point?

Any research I could look at or any links that you may be able to provide that can point me in the correct direction?

 

[berkeman]

How would one go about making a particle beam cutter? I'm thinking like a powerful laser type cutter.

Why use a particle beam cutter instead of the laser cutter? You get lots more cutting for much less money with the laser option (as opposed to a giant particle accelerator).

There is also a big safety issue with a charged particle beam cutter -- can you figure out what that may be?

 

[nasu]

You could make something like this:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Focused_ion_beam
This is a particle beam cutter. It cuts, it uses a particle beam.

Of course, could is more like "could" if you are talking about do it yourself.:)

 

[Jeff Rosenbury]

The big problem seems to me that breaking radiation would mess up the cut, at least for high energy beams. Still, for the right materials (ones that don't harbor residual radiation) it should work. (A plasma cutter is an example of a low energy beam.) Water is a good substance.

Ice statue made with a particle beam anyone? A great centerpiece at your next party.