We are on the threshold of a new era in particle-physics research. In 2008, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) — the highest-energy accelerator ever built — will come into operation at CERN, the European laboratory that straddles the French–Swiss border near Geneva.

In the debris of the collisions between protons in the LHC, physicists are hoping for a sign. Hypotheses such as the Higgs mechanism (and associated particle) and supersymmetry remain to be proved. The high energy of the LHC collisions will give the best ever 'reach': that is, the best chance yet of finding the decisive signature of a Higgs or supersymmetric particle.

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