The study of elementary particles and their interactions
Lead Research Organisation:
Imperial College London
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
This grant is to continue the group's programme of investigation into the properties of elementary particles and the fundamental forces of nature.
One of the main objectives of this grant will be to support the exploitation of the LHC experiments which will be taking data during the period of this grant. The CMS experiment will continue to measure the Higgs particle, following its successful discovery in 2012. It will also be able to cover completely new areas of parameter space in searches for SUSY and other new phenomena such as finding evidence of potential dark matter candidates. The LHCb experiment will offer complementary tests of the Standard Model and beyond with the ability to look for extremely rare decays in flavour physics and to measure CP asymmetries in the decays of B mesons, both of which are sensitive to contributions from new physics. These experiments will make extensive use of Grid computing which the group will continue to develop and exploit, both for the LHC and for other experiments. The group will also be active in preparing the next generation of detectors for the high luminosity upgrade of the LHC.
The T2K experiment will allow us to expand our understanding of the masses and mixings in the neutrino sector, and should provide key measurements which will guide us as to whether we ultimately could see evidence of CP violation in the neutrino sector. One of the other missing pieces of the neutrino puzzle is whether the neutrino is its own antiparticle. We are preparing the SuperNEMO experiment to attempt to determine if the neutrino is a Majorana particle and first data-taking will occur during the grant. Heavy neutrino-like particles are predicted in several new physics models and we are starting preparations for the SHiP experiment to search for these new particles.
The group will be active in several experiments specifically searching for new physics. Direct conversion of muons to electrons is heavily suppressed in the Standard Model so any observation of this process would be a major discovery. The COMET experiment is searching for this process and will take data during the grant. Similarly, a measurable electric dipole moment for the electron could only arise through new physics and the eEDM experiment will continue to push down the limits for such an effect. Around a quarter of the universe is composed of dark matter and its nature is unknown. This has so far remained undetected in the laboratory and the group will continue its activity in searching for direct evidence of a dark matter candidate through the LUX and later LUX-ZEPLIN experiments.
Accelerators to produce muon beams will be needed for future neutrino and muon collider experiments. The group is continuing its research in this area through the MICE experiment and nuSTORM studies. Proton beams also have potential applications for other scientific fields and for healthcare, and the group is studying how to apply these techniques in these areas. Understanding the LHC in terms of phenomenology is critical to comparing data to theory and the group is very active in this area.
One of the main objectives of this grant will be to support the exploitation of the LHC experiments which will be taking data during the period of this grant. The CMS experiment will continue to measure the Higgs particle, following its successful discovery in 2012. It will also be able to cover completely new areas of parameter space in searches for SUSY and other new phenomena such as finding evidence of potential dark matter candidates. The LHCb experiment will offer complementary tests of the Standard Model and beyond with the ability to look for extremely rare decays in flavour physics and to measure CP asymmetries in the decays of B mesons, both of which are sensitive to contributions from new physics. These experiments will make extensive use of Grid computing which the group will continue to develop and exploit, both for the LHC and for other experiments. The group will also be active in preparing the next generation of detectors for the high luminosity upgrade of the LHC.
The T2K experiment will allow us to expand our understanding of the masses and mixings in the neutrino sector, and should provide key measurements which will guide us as to whether we ultimately could see evidence of CP violation in the neutrino sector. One of the other missing pieces of the neutrino puzzle is whether the neutrino is its own antiparticle. We are preparing the SuperNEMO experiment to attempt to determine if the neutrino is a Majorana particle and first data-taking will occur during the grant. Heavy neutrino-like particles are predicted in several new physics models and we are starting preparations for the SHiP experiment to search for these new particles.
The group will be active in several experiments specifically searching for new physics. Direct conversion of muons to electrons is heavily suppressed in the Standard Model so any observation of this process would be a major discovery. The COMET experiment is searching for this process and will take data during the grant. Similarly, a measurable electric dipole moment for the electron could only arise through new physics and the eEDM experiment will continue to push down the limits for such an effect. Around a quarter of the universe is composed of dark matter and its nature is unknown. This has so far remained undetected in the laboratory and the group will continue its activity in searching for direct evidence of a dark matter candidate through the LUX and later LUX-ZEPLIN experiments.
Accelerators to produce muon beams will be needed for future neutrino and muon collider experiments. The group is continuing its research in this area through the MICE experiment and nuSTORM studies. Proton beams also have potential applications for other scientific fields and for healthcare, and the group is studying how to apply these techniques in these areas. Understanding the LHC in terms of phenomenology is critical to comparing data to theory and the group is very active in this area.
Planned Impact
While much of the research described in this grant is exploring fundamental questions where the immediate impact implications of discoveries can take decades to unfold, there are many examples of areas where technology developed in the pursuit of discoveries can have a more immediate impact. The group has potential impact in several key areas; training, outreach, transfer of HEP technology and ideas, and transfer and development of accelerator technology. These reach a diverse audience ranging from schoolchildren to cancer practitioners to neutron source users. See the submitted "Pathways To Impact" document for further details.
Organisations
Publications
Akerib DS
(2016)
Results on the Spin-Dependent Scattering of Weakly Interacting Massive Particles on Nucleons from the Run 3 Data of the LUX Experiment.
in Physical review letters
Akerib DS
(2019)
Results of a Search for Sub-GeV Dark Matter Using 2013 LUX Data.
in Physical review letters
Akerib DS
(2016)
Improved Limits on Scattering of Weakly Interacting Massive Particles from Reanalysis of 2013 LUX Data.
in Physical review letters
Akerib DS
(2017)
First Searches for Axions and Axionlike Particles with the LUX Experiment.
in Physical review letters
Akmete A
(2017)
The active muon shield in the SHiP experiment
in Journal of Instrumentation
Alenkov V
(2019)
Irradiation studies of a multi-doped Gd 3 Al 2 Ga 3 O12 scintillator
in Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
Armano M
(2016)
Sub-Femto-g Free Fall for Space-Based Gravitational Wave Observatories: LISA Pathfinder Results.
in Physical review letters
Armano M
(2016)
Constraints on LISA Pathfinder's self-gravity: design requirements, estimates and testing procedures
in Classical and Quantum Gravity
Arnold R
(2019)
Detailed studies of $$^{100}$$Mo two-neutrino double beta decay in NEMO-3
in The European Physical Journal C
Asselin P
(2017)
Characterising molecules for fundamental physics: an accurate spectroscopic model of methyltrioxorhenium derived from new infrared and millimetre-wave measurements
in Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics
Bagnaschi E
(2018)
Likelihood analysis of the pMSSM11 in light of LHC 13-TeV data.
in The European physical journal. C, Particles and fields
Bayliss V
(2018)
The liquid-hydrogen absorber for MICE
in Journal of Instrumentation
Boettcher T
(2019)
Direct photon production at LHCb
in Nuclear Physics A
Bursche A
(2019)
Study of coherent J/? production in lead-lead collisions at s NN = 5 TeV with the LHCb experiment
in Nuclear Physics A
Carr R
(2018)
Neutrino physics for Korean diplomacy.
in Science (New York, N.Y.)
Carr R
(2019)
Neutrino-Based Tools for Nuclear Verification and Diplomacy in North Korea
in Science & Global Security
Chala M.
(2019)
Searching new physics in rare B-meson decays into multiple muons
in European Physical Journal C
Costa J
(2018)
Likelihood analysis of the sub-GUT MSSM in light of LHC 13-TeV data
in The European Physical Journal C
Cotter JP
(2016)
Design and fabrication of diffractive atom chips for laser cooling and trapping.
in Applied physics. B, Lasers and optics
D'Enterria D
(2019)
Evidence for light-by-light scattering in ultraperipheral PbPb collisions at s NN = 5.02 TeV
in Nuclear Physics A
Diab B
(2019)
Fragmentation of J/? in jets in pp collisions at s = 5.02 TeV
in Nuclear Physics A
Edmonds A
(2022)
Measurement of proton, deuteron, triton, and a particle emission after nuclear muon capture on Al, Si, and Ti with the AlCap experiment
in Physical Review C
Egede U
(2019)
Anomalous asymmetry
in Nature Physics
El-Neaj Y
(2020)
AEDGE: Atomic Experiment for Dark Matter and Gravity Exploration in Space
in EPJ Quantum Technology
Fitch N
(2020)
Methods for measuring the electron's electric dipole moment using ultracold YbF molecules
in Quantum Science and Technology
Gibson S
(2018)
A novel longitudinal laserwire to non-invasively measure 6-dimensional bunch parameters at high current hydrogen ion accelerators
in Journal of Physics: Conference Series
Grandi S
(2016)
Quantum dynamics of a driven two-level molecule with variable dephasing
in Physical Review A
Guerra E
(2019)
Using world p ± -nucleus scattering data to constrain an intranuclear cascade model
in Physical Review D
Guttridge A
(2016)
Direct loading of a large Yb MOT on the ${}^{1}{ {\rm{S}}}_{0}\;\to {}^{3}{ {\rm{P}}}_{1}$ transition
in Journal of Physics B: Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics
Hagiwara K
(2019)
Search for Astronomical Neutrinos from Blazar TXS 0506+056 in Super-Kamiokande
in The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Hagiwara K.
(2019)
Search for astronomical neutrino from blazar TXS0506+056 in super-kamiokande
in Proceedings of Science
Hall G
(2019)
A high angular resolution silicon microstrip telescope for crystal channeling studies
in Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
Ho C
(2020)
New techniques for a measurement of the electron's electric dipole moment
in New Journal of Physics
Hopkins SA
(2016)
A versatile dual-species Zeeman slower for caesium and ytterbium.
in The Review of scientific instruments
Hopkins SA
(2016)
Publisher's Note: "A versatile dual-species Zeeman slower for caesium and ytterbium" [Rev. Sci. Instrum. 87, 043109 (2016)].
in The Review of scientific instruments
Jiang M
(2019)
Atmospheric neutrino oscillation analysis with improved event reconstruction in Super-Kamiokande IV
in Progress of Theoretical and Experimental Physics
Kachulis C
(2018)
Search for Boosted Dark Matter Interacting with Electrons in Super-Kamiokande.
in Physical review letters
Kachulis C
(2018)
Search for Boosted Dark Matter Interacting with Electrons in Super-Kamiokande
in Physical Review Letters
Kemp SL
(2016)
Production and characterization of a dual species magneto-optical trap of cesium and ytterbium.
in The Review of scientific instruments
Khachatryan V
(2016)
Phenomenological MSSM interpretation of CMS searches in pp collisions at s = 7 $$ \sqrt{s}=7 $$ and 8 TeV
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Khachatryan V
(2016)
Measurement of Long-Range Near-Side Two-Particle Angular Correlations in pp Collisions at sqrt[s]=13 TeV.
in Physical review letters
Khachatryan V
(2016)
Event generator tunes obtained from underlying event and multiparton scattering measurements.
in The European physical journal. C, Particles and fields
Khachatryan V
(2016)
Observation of top quark pairs produced in association with a vector boson in pp collisions at s = 8 $$ \sqrt{s}=8 $$ TeV
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Khachatryan V
(2016)
Search for two Higgs bosons in final states containing two photons and two bottom quarks in proton-proton collisions at 8 TeV
in Physical Review D
Khachatryan V
(2016)
Search for a massive resonance decaying into a Higgs boson and a W or Z boson in hadronic final states in proton-proton collisions at s = 8 $$ \sqrt{s}=8 $$ TeV
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Khachatryan V
(2016)
Erratum to: Search for direct pair production of scalar top quarks in the single- and dilepton channels in proton-proton collisions at s = 8 $$ \sqrt{s}=8 $$ TeV
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Khachatryan V
(2016)
Search for single production of scalar leptoquarks in proton-proton collisions at s = 8 TeV
in Physical Review D
| Description | One of the main objectives of this grant was to support the exploitation of the LHC experiments which were taking data during the period of this grant. The CMS experiment continued to measure the Higgs particle, following its successful discovery in 2012. It was also able to cover completely new areas of parameter space in searches for SUSY and other new phenomena such as finding evidence of potential dark matter candidates. The LHCb experiment offered complementary tests of the Standard Model and beyond with the ability to look for extremely rare decays in flavour physics and to measure CP asymmetries in the decays of B mesons, both of which are sensitive to contributions from new physics. These experiments made extensive use of Grid computing which we continued to develop and exploit, both for the LHC and for other experiments. We were also active in preparing the next generation of detectors for the high luminosity upgrade of the LHC. The T2K experiment allowed us to expand our understanding of the masses and mixings in the neutrino sector, and provided key measurements towards obtaining evidence of CP violation in the neutrino sector. One of the other missing pieces of the neutrino puzzle is whether the neutrino is its own antiparticle. We prepared the SuperNEMO experiment to attempt to determine if the neutrino is a Majorana particle and first data-taking occurred during the grant. Heavy neutrino-like particles are predicted in several new physics models and we started preparations for the SHiP experiment to search for these new particles. The group was active in several experiments specifically searching for new physics. Direct conversion of muons to electrons is heavily suppressed in the Standard Model so any observation of this process would be a major discovery. The COMET experiment was prepared to search for this process. Similarly, a measurable electric dipole moment for the electron could only arise through new physics and the eEDM experiment continued to push down the limits for such an effect. Around a quarter of the universe is composed of dark matter and its nature is unknown. This has so far remained undetected in the laboratory and we continued to search for direct evidence of a dark matter candidate through the LUX and later LUX-ZEPLIN experiments. Accelerators to produce muon beams will be needed for future neutrino and muon collider experiments. The group continued its research in this area through the MICE experiment and nuSTORM studies. Proton beams also have potential applications for other scientific fields and for healthcare, and we studied how to apply these techniques in these areas. Understanding the LHC in terms of phenomenology is critical to comparing data to theory and we were very active in this area. |
| Exploitation Route | The knowledge gained will directly benefit future researchers in particle physics, astronomy and cosmology. |
| Sectors | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) Education Healthcare |
| Description | ZEPLIN-III detector exhibit & Public Lecture at "Whitby & the Cosmos" exhibition, Whitby, UK |
| 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 | The ZEPLIN-III dark matter detector, which operated at the Boulby Underground Laboratory between 2007 and 2011, was adapted for public display at Imperial College London and donated to the Whitby Museum in late 2018 -- where it became the centrepiece of the topical exhibition "Whitby & the Cosmos". I gave a public lecture entitled "Searching for WIMPs under the Moors" on 15 Feb 2019 to open the event. The ZEPLIN-III instrument will be moved to the permanent collection of the Museum once the exhibition comes to an end in July 2019. Both the exhibition and the public lecture were widely publicised in the local media. The Museum received further support from the Royal Society for this event. The exhibition will receive many thousand of visitors over the coming months. We had the opportunity to donate the instrument to the Science Museum in London, but we chose the Whitby Museum instead to honour a town which hosted the ZEPLIN collaboration for two decades. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://whitbymuseum.org.uk/2019/01/09/whitby-and-the-cosmos/ |