LHCb Upgrade: Beyond the Energy Frontier
Lead Research Organisation:
UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
LHCb is a particle physics experiment operating at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. It is the world's leading physics experiment in its field and has a unique capability to explore physics beyond the Standard Model. LHCb's main aim is to search for new physics beyond the Standard Model through precision tests of matter anti-matter asymmetries (CP violation) and rare decays of particles containing beauty and charm quarks. The experiment also has world-class programmes in other areas due to its unique design and coverage of an angular region closer to the beams that at the other main LHC experiments.
The opportunity now exists to dramatically increase the reach of LHCb's programme and to widen its physics profile. The UK groups propose to lead the upgrade of the VELO (Vertex Locator), the most precise vertex detector at the LHC, and LHCb's unique RICH (Ring Imaging Cherenkov) particle identification (PID) system. A programme of physics performance studies, computing, reconstruction software and trigger algorithm development, and involvement in a new scintillating fibre tracker complements this work.
The opportunity now exists to dramatically increase the reach of LHCb's programme and to widen its physics profile. The UK groups propose to lead the upgrade of the VELO (Vertex Locator), the most precise vertex detector at the LHC, and LHCb's unique RICH (Ring Imaging Cherenkov) particle identification (PID) system. A programme of physics performance studies, computing, reconstruction software and trigger algorithm development, and involvement in a new scintillating fibre tracker complements this work.
Planned Impact
The LHCb Upgrade offers strategic economic impact opportunities for UK Industry through the two major UK-led detectors (VELO, RICH), the novel scintillating fibre technology, and the DAQ and computing farm. External benefits include the development of novel pixel and cooling technology applicable to cancer treatment, molecular microscopy, light sources and fusion centres, and photon detectors applicable to medical imaging and positron emission tomography. The construction project has strong training opportunities for PhD students. LHCb-UK also has an enviable track record in public outreach through media, talks, exhibits and science festivals. A major exhibition on the theme of anti-matter will be sought for use at the Royal Society Summer Exhibition, and use at regional science museums.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Valerie Gibson (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Aaij R
(2016)
Study of the production of and hadrons in pp collisions and first measurement of the branching fraction
in Chinese Physics C
Aaij R
(2016)
Model-independent measurement of mixing parameters in D0 ? K S 0 p+p- decays
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Aaij R
(2015)
Search for the lepton flavour violating decay t - ? µ - µ + µ -
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Aaij R
(2016)
Observation of the B s 0 ? J/??? decay
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Aaij R
(2016)
Study of ?(2S) production and cold nuclear matter effects in pPb collisions at s N N = 5 $$ \sqrt{s_{N\;N}}=5 $$ TeV
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Aaij R
(2016)
Angular analysis of the B 0 ? K *0 µ + µ - decay using 3 fb-1 of integrated luminosity
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Aaij R
(2016)
Study of D sJ (*) + mesons decaying to D * + K S 0 and D *0 K + final states
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Aaij R
(2016)
Measurement of forward W and Z boson production in pp collisions at s = 8 $$ \sqrt{s}=8 $$ TeV
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Aaij R
(2016)
First observation of the decay B s 0 ? K S 0 K *(892)0 at LHCb
in Journal of High Energy Physics
Calabrese R
(2022)
Performance of the LHCb RICH detectors during LHC Run 2
in Journal of Instrumentation
Aaij R
(2016)
A new algorithm for identifying the flavour of B 0 s mesons at LHCb
in Journal of Instrumentation
Andreotti M
(2021)
Characterisation of signal-induced noise in Hamamatsu R11265 Multianode Photomultiplier Tubes
in Journal of Instrumentation
Bartolini M
(2025)
LHCb RICH Fast-timing photon detection at the SPS charged particle beam
in Journal of Instrumentation
Wotton S
(2024)
The LHCb RICH upgrade for the high luminosity LHC era
in Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
Keizer F
(2023)
A novel fast-timing readout chain for LHCb RICH LS3 and prototype beam tests
in Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
Aaij R
(2016)
Erratum: Constraints on the unitarity triangle angle ? from Dalitz plot analysis of B 0 ? D K + p - decays [Phys. Rev. D 93 , 112018 (2016)]
in Physical Review D
Aaij R
(2016)
Measurement of the B s 0 ? D s ( * ) + D s ( * ) - branching fractions
in Physical Review D
Aaij R
(2016)
Measurement of the Difference of Time-Integrated CP Asymmetries in D^{0}?K^{-}K^{+} and D^{0}?p^{-}p^{+} Decays.
in Physical review letters
Aaij R
(2016)
First Observation of D^{0}-D[over ¯]^{0} Oscillations in D^{0}?K^{+}p^{-}p^{+}p^{-} Decays and Measurement of the Associated Coherence Parameters.
in Physical review letters
Aaij R
(2016)
Measurements of long-range near-side angular correlations in s N N = 5 TeV proton-lead collisions in the forward region
in Physics Letters B
Aaij R
(2016)
Search for the lepton-flavour violating decay D0?e±ÂµÂ±
in Physics Letters B
| Title | Science Museum Collider Exhbition |
| Description | Exhibition featruing the Large Hadron Collider and CERN |
| Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
| Year Produced | 2013 |
| Impact | The exhibition has reached over 100,000 people worldwide. |
| URL | http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/visitmuseum/Plan_your_visit/exhibitions/collider |
| Description | We successfully developed the fast readout chain for the LHCb Upgrade II RICH system. Tests and characterisations of different sensors. Converged on a candidate for LS3 enhancements which will be installed in 2027. Prototyping of the final production readout board, FastRICH delivered and under rigorous testing. |
| Exploitation Route | For use by those who will install and commission LS3 enhancements. Into production cycle for LS4. |
| Sectors | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) Electronics |
| Description | Many of the devices we design and develop in our lab at Cambridge are then shipped to CERN for rigorous testing in "test beams". We setup and test the devices using CERN's facilities and in-house expertise, along with other institute representatives with whom we collaborate. Some of the devices, e.g. picoTDC, are commercialised via CERN micro-electronics. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2022 |
| Sector | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Electronics |
| Impact Types | Economic |
| Description | LHCb Upgrade II: preconstruction for the ultimate LHC flavour physics experiment |
| Amount | £272,610 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | ST/X006514/1 |
| Organisation | University of Cambridge |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2024 |
| End | 03/2027 |
| Description | LHCb Collaboration |
| Organisation | European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) |
| Department | CERN LHC LHCb |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | I have been working on analysis of LHCb data and contributing to performance tasks for the experiment. I have acted as an internal reviewer on several occasions for the collaboration. I currently hold a management position within the collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Have input of common software and data formats. Sharing of resources. |
| Impact | Several publications. |
| Start Year | 2014 |
| Title | Hardware, devices and firmware provided for CERN test beams |
| Description | All under the CERN Open Hardware Licence (CERN-OHL). Released under this grant and its sister grants over a period from 2022- muDAQ FPGA-based back-end readout board Firmware implementation of back-end data acquisition and controls interfaces Front-end FPGA DAQ and data transmission module (K7Chimaera) Firmware implementation of 150ps resolution TDC in FPGA FPGA-based trigger processor module (Chimaera2) Firmware implementation of trigger logic for beam tests Pluggable front-end FastIC ASIC interfacing module Pluggable front-end picoTDC interfacing module Pluggable lpGBT interfacing module - SFP variant Pluggable 4xlpGBT interfacing module - VTRX+ variant Carrier board for pluggable modules Versatile DAQ and controls software with GUI lpTCM front-end control and synchronous command interface lpDTM prototype 4xlpGBT/VTRX+ data transmission module lpDTM 4xlpGBT/VTRX+ LS3/U2 engineering prototype data transmission module. |
| Type Of Technology | Systems, Materials & Instrumental Engineering |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Open Source License? | Yes |
| Impact | These developments allow the LHCb detector and its upgrades to run at the design performance and beyond. The electronics read out chain from photon sensor to offline signal is developed by Cambridge under this grant. We produce electronics for around 3-4 test beam runs per year, iterating and improving the design to hit grant milestones. This work will continue until the ultimate hardware upgrade of LHCb is installed (~2030s). Commercialisation of these items are routinely done under CERN microelectronics (ME) Department. |
| URL | https://kt.cern/technologies/picotdc |
| Description | Cambridge Particle Physics Masterclass |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | We invite A-level physics students from across the country to participate in a one day workshop (we do two sets of about 50 each on two days) - 100 pupils in total. These events are primarily intended for those students taking A-Level modules or equivalent that include particle physics, but are also open to any physics student or teacher interested in studying or teaching the subject. The days are a mixture of short talks by research physicists and practical sessions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016,2017,2018,2019,2020,2021,2022,2023,2024,2025,2026 |
| URL | https://www.hep.phy.cam.ac.uk/outreach/masterclass |
| Description | Gravity Fields Festival |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Biannual Science Festival held in Grantham in honour of Sir Isaac Newton. I am Patron. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012,2014,2016 |
| URL | https://www.gravityfields.co.uk/ |
| Description | In Our Time |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I have been a panel member on BBC Radio 4 "In Our Time" three times (Theories of Everything, Antimatter, the Neutron). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | Pre-2006,2011,2016 |
| URL | http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qykl |
| Description | New Scientist Expert event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | New Scientist expert event on the Large Hadron Collider |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Royal Society Summer Exhibition |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Royal Society Summer Exhibition - AntiMatter |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Science Museum "Collider" exhibition |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The Science Museum Collider exhibition has reached over 100,000 people and is currently on world tour. I am one of the orginal designers and advisors of the exhibition. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014,2015,2016,2017 |
| URL | http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/visitmuseum/Plan_your_visit/exhibitions/collider |
| Description | U3Age - Norah Boyce Lecture |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | U3Age are educated retired people who have an interest in science. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011,2016 |
| Description | Worshipful Company Scientific Instrument Makers - Women in Engineering and Science |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Event to encourage Year 7 and 8 girls to do Science and Engineering. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |