Particle Physics at the High Energy Frontier: Run-3 to HL-LHC

Cornell University, Ithaca NY

Investigators

Abstract

This research project aims to better understand the Universe at the smallest scales by probing nature's basic symmetries and their relation to the origin of mass. The 2012 discovery of a Higgs boson with mass close to 125 GeV represents both the crowning achievement of the Standard Model of particle physics and a hint beyond it - how can a light Higgs boson possibly survive huge, destabilizing quantum effects without new, undiscovered physics? Furthermore, dark matter is known to exist from astronomical observations; however, the particle properties of dark matter remain shrouded in mystery. The combined activities of the Cornell University group address such basic questions puzzling science - the origin of mass and the particle nature of dark matter - and have the potential for surprising discoveries that may change the way we understand our physical world. This award will provide support Cornell's work on the CMS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, a particle physics laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland. During the three-year timeframe of this award, CMS will complete instrumentation upgrades and resume data taking. Additionally during this period, the upgrades of CMS for high luminosity HL-LHC operation will be in full gear. The Cornell group serves as a project leader of the broader HL-LHC effort of the US groups on CMS, and has its own specific interests, including in the upgrade of the forward pixel tracking detector and track-triggering for the experiment. Among the notable broader impacts activities of the Cornell group, many include significant outreach to students and the public in the upstate New York region through the outreach office of the Cornell Laboratory for Accelerator-based Sciences and Education (CLASSE). The group will develop a significant number of teaching units and science kits for a "Lending Library" that can be taken to schools or used in after-school programs to bring exciting hands-on activities to hundreds of local children. The requests for teacher training in support of such activities have far outnumbered the availability of training opportunities. To increase the reach of this valuable program, the Cornell group will produce videos to further expand upon the materials that are available to support the Lending Library. This work and content development will be done in close coordination with the CLASSE professional staff, to identify topic, length and target audience. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.