Physics at the Large Hadron Collider: Understanding Fundamental Interactions and Upgrading the CMS Experiment

University Of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln NE

Investigators

Abstract

This program of research 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 serves as 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? Further, 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 University of Nebraska at Lincoln (UNL) 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 for the UNL group's work on the CMS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, a particle physics laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland. The group has a broad range of physics interests, with ongoing and planned measurements of Higgs physics, top production and decay, electroweak physics, plus searches for new phenomena. The group provides leadership to the experiment in software and computing, and UNL operates a Tier-2 computing center for CMS. Technically, the UNL group is contributing significantly to the upgrades of the CMS experiment for its operation in the very high-rate collision environments foreseen in the next decade at the LHC. Central to their efforts is the construction of parts of the Forward Pixel Detector of the CMS Inner Tracker. This detector system is critical to the reconstruction of many event types of special interest to the CMS program of discovery science. The UNL group leads the distinctive Cosmic Ray Observatory Project (CROP) outreach program. High school-based cosmic-ray research teams around Nebraska study extensive air showers with student- built and operated detectors, and future expansion will focus on under-served rural populations. The ongoing CROP initiative has served as a model for similar high-school cosmic-ray efforts across the U.S., Canada, and abroad. 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.