You could choose any element to use in a particle accelerator, but the most commonly-used one is Hydrogen- it's the smallest, the lightest, and most abundant of all elements.
They accelerate particles using magnets. Once going at speed close to the speed of light, particles smash into each other. Accelerators are used to examine the properties of subatomic particles....
In general, a nuclear particle accelerator is a device that uses shifting magnetic fields to accelerate a charged particle down or around an evacuated pipe. By using a succession of magnetic "swats"...