Speaker
Description
Test beams are essential for developing and validating detector technologies for future colliders. The CERN PS East Area and SPS North Area provide complementary beams of electrons, muons and hadrons, including pions, kaons and protons. The East Area covers the low-momentum range, extending from sub-GeV/c momenta up to 15 GeV/c, while the North Area provides secondary beams up to 360 GeV/c and attenuated primary proton beams at 400 GeV/c. Ion beams are also available in selected beamlines. Adjustable beam intensities, momentum selection and dedicated instrumentation for beam characterisation and particle identification support tests ranging from individual sensors to large detector prototypes. This contribution will review these capabilities and the available experimental infrastructure, with particular attention to detector R&D for future electron–positron colliders. It will present recent improvements, including developments towards lower-momentum beams and high-quality electron beams, discuss planned infrastructure upgrades and provide an outlook on future beam availability.