Ultra-Rare Kaon Decay Experiments at CERN

George Mason University, Fairfax VA

Investigators

Abstract

One of the major intellectual achievements of the 20th century was the development of the Standard Model (SM) of particle physics. This model succeeded in classifying all of the elementary particles known at the time into a hierarchy of groups having similar quantum properties. The validity of this model to date was recently confirmed by the discovery of the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at the CERN laboratory near Geneva Switzerland. However, the Standard Model as it currently exists leaves open many questions about the universe, including such fundamental questions as to why the mass of the Higgs boson has the value it has. To answer these questions it is necessary to go beyond the present picture of the Universe described by the Standard Model to the next phase of development, Beyond the Standard Model (BSM). Investigations in BSM physics probe such questions as why matter dominates over anti-matter in the Universe, the values of the masses of the fundamental constituents of matter, the quarks and the leptons, the size of the mixings among the quarks, and separately among the leptons, and the properties of dark matter. This award will contribute to this search through measurements made of the decay of charged K mesons, a rare process. The award will also continue the impressive effort in broadening the participation in fundamental research, through its participation in QuarkNet and through a separate NSF IRES (International Research Experience for Students) grant that brings up to five undergraduates to CERN each summer, with applicants selected from a consortium of universities and colleges in the Washington DC Metropolitan Area. Searches for evidence for new physics beyond the Standard Model can be addressed through direct searches at the Energy Frontier at High Energy Colliding Beam Facilities such as the LHC and through a complementary technique of indirect searches at the Intensity Frontier, in experimental measurements of very-rare decay modes of known particles. This award focuses on continued research with the NA62 experiment at CERN, which is a measurement of the rare decay of the charged K meson through the process, K+ -> pion+, neutrino, anti-neutrino. This decay is well-predicted in the Standard Model of Particle Physics, and a precision experimental measurement of the actual rate could provide evidence for new physics, if the observed rate differs significantly from the theoretical prediction. This award will provide help in all aspects of NA62, with responsibilities in event trigger logic, trigger hardware and front-end electronics communication, slow controls, and a counter for the detection of kaons in the beam line.