SLAC
Abbreviation with 2 meanings
| Stands for | SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 2 |
| Categories | Science & Engineering, Education & Academia |
SLAC has two meanings. It stands for SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (physics) or Small liberal arts college (academic).
Meanings of SLAC at a glance
| # | SLAC stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory | Science & Engineering › Physics |
| 2 | Small liberal arts college | Education & Academia › Academic |
1. SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Science & Engineering · Physics Abbreviations
US Department of Energy laboratory in Menlo Park, California, operated by Stanford University, home to a 3.2-kilometer linear accelerator built in the 1960s. Research there has led to several Nobel Prizes, and the linac now drives the LCLS X-ray free-electron laser.
Example: SLAC's LCLS fires X-ray pulses a few femtoseconds long to film chemical reactions as they happen.
Founded in 1962 as the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, it took its current name in 2008, keeping SLAC as a name rather than an acronym. Experiments there provided the first evidence of quarks (Nobel 1990) and discovered the charm-containing J/psi particle (1976) and the tau lepton (1995). Its accelerator was among the longest straight structures in the world.
2. Small liberal arts college
Education & Academia · Academic Abbreviations
Informal term, common in academic job markets and college admissions forums, for a selective undergraduate-focused liberal arts college with a few thousand students or fewer. Faculty jobs at SLACs emphasize teaching and mentoring more than research output.
Example: She prefers a SLAC job where she can teach small seminars and involve undergraduates in research.
Graduate students often contrast "R1 jobs" with "SLAC jobs" when discussing career paths. In physics, SLAC refers instead to the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory at Stanford, originally the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center.
Related abbreviations
More physics abbreviations
- RF – Radio frequency
- RHIC – Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider
- SEM – Scanning electron microscope
- SHM – Simple harmonic motion
- SM – Standard Model
- sonar – Sound navigation and ranging
- SQUID – Superconducting quantum interference device
- SR – Special relativity
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