working with the atlas experiment
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Glasgow
Department Name: School of Physics and Astronomy
Abstract
working with the atlas experiment
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ST/N504075/1 | 01/10/2015 | 31/03/2021 | |||
| 1802774 | Studentship | ST/N504075/1 | 01/10/2016 | 01/07/2020 | Dwayne Spiteri |
| Description | The ATLAS Experiment |
| Organisation | European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) |
| Department | ATLAS Collaboration |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The ATLAS experiment consists of a team of over 3000 physicists studying all aspects of high energy particle physics. The ATLAS experiment performs physics analysis on the data that comes from the ATLAS detector which is on the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. Generally my role in this collaboration is to look at the properties of the newly discovered Higgs Boson and its decay into b quarks. The most effective way to do this at the LHC is to require that the Higgs is produced alongside another more familiar particle (like a W or a Z boson) to make the resulting end products easier to distinguish from the background. For the day-to-day this is achieved by studying ways to more effectively comb through our data to find what we are looking for. One such study I have conducted was to look at different ways of triggering the events to recover particles that pass through regions of the detector where they are unable to be detected. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The ATLAS collaboration provides logistical support, with the main draw being that it co-ordinates the work of physicists across the globe. However it also organises members such that they perform other tasks for the general benefit of the individuals of the collaboration such as; organising conferences, reading over material to be published/presented outside the collaboration, allowing students to get involved with technical work. |
| Impact | The research group recently produced a paper (July 2018) and another is on the way this year. |
| Start Year | 2016 |
| Description | Co-ordinator of the ATLAS UK Virtual Visits |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | The ATLAS Virtual Visit programme is an initiative launched by the ATLAS collaboration aimed at showing people outside the collaboration (mainly schools), what ATLAS is, what it does and what options are available to a person wanting to study particle physics. It is essentially a live video link between an ATLAS scientist at CERN and a client which could be a school, or a university or even the general public. Visits are held from just outside the ATLAS control room to all over the world, but I have been instrumental in launching the programme with a UK focus, trying to target specifically schools that had not interacted with CERN/ATLAS before. Schools have reported enjoying the visits and have often later reported a new interest in particle physics in their students. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017,2018,2019 |
| URL | http://atlasvirtualvisit.web.cern.ch/content/uk |
| Description | Grand Opening of CERN's new address |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | New Opening of CERN address and European Researchers Night - A afternoon of speeches to commemorate the new address of CERN followed by a drinks reception with Meyrin officials and businessmen. Each CERN member state was represented in a flag to be raised and I was asked to represent the researchers on behalf of the United Kingdom in this historic flag-raising ceremony. This directly was followed by European researchers night and I helped out showing members of the public around the microcosm at CERN |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Guide around the CERN museum - The Microcosm |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | This event was with ~400 visitors from science museums across the world. My role was to engage visitors in discussion, complement the exhibition by telling visitors about CERN and what I do, just as I would in a guided tour. If the conversation turned that way, I also let them know that CERN's exhibitions team can help them integrate CERN stories into their science centres. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | IOP Festival of Physics |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | A public event exhibiting various branches of phyics over the weekend at Dynamic Earth Edinburgh. The department was involved in a particle physics exhibit showing off some current detector modules, a Medipix detector, and a live like to CERN, where more colleagues from the University of Glasgow and others were fielding questions. This was also done in partnership with Alan Walker from the University of Edinburgh and his Particle Physics for Scottish Schools Exhibit." |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Pint of Science |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Pint of Science is a worldwide festival that emphasises bringing research to the people in a relaxed environment in a place easily accessible and convenient to the general public, the pub. Pint of Science has many themes running over the three nights. Our Society runs issues relating to sciences interplay with society at large and invites speakers from (mainly) Scottish institutions to give talks. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017,2019,2020 |
| Description | Python Masterclass |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | As part of a week-long masterclass hosted by the school of Physics and Astronomy at the university of Glasgow. It was arranged for a group of schoolchildren to learn Python for two afternoons. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Tiny Alice Launch |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | The department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Glasgow offered to assist in the launch an exhibition of Tiny Alice. We were to live stream the use of department microscopes on the worlds smallest book. A copy of Alice in Wonderland etched into silicon. The event was based at the university of Glasgow |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |