High Energy Physics Research with the DO Experiment

University Of Kansas Center For Research Inc, Lawrence KS

Investigators

Abstract

This proposal requests support for the research program of the high energy physics group at the University of Kansas, for work on the D0 experiment at Fermilab and also for work on the CLEO experiment at the Cornell University CESR electron-positron collider. The upgraded D0 detector has just begun taking data at the world's energy frontier in the long-anticipated Run II at the Fermilab Tevatron proton-antiproton collider. In addition to searches for new phenomena beyond the minimal Standard Model, e.g., for the Higgs boson or for supersymmetric partners to the known particles, the D0 experiment will make precision measurements in top-quark physics, W and Z physics, QCD, and b-quark physics. The Kansas group has played a leading role in building the silicon tracker for the D0 upgrade and is also responsible for the offline software support of the central preshower (CPS) detector. This group will also align, calibrate, and fine-tune the CPS detector for maximal detection efficiency. The group's expertise in b-quark physics, silicon, and preshower detectors will all be put to use in tagging jets containing a b-quark. This is a crucial step in all new physics searches. The Kansas group will also continue its analysis of CLEO data, especially in the area of charmed baryons, where they have traditionally played an important role.