High Energy Physics and Computational Science

  If maths is the language the universe was written in, then pi, written as π, is surely one of its favourite characters. Initially discovered as a mathematical constant of the ratio between the circumference and radius of a circle , we soon realised that the number pops up everywhere when we study the properties of the universe and its constituents. From thermodynamics and electromagnetism to biological sciences and creation of our entire digital ecosystem, the humble pi makes its appearance. The number has gained such a cult following that we even have a day to celebrate it - pi day , celebrated on the 14th of March, because of its resemblance to the first 3 digits Pi is an irrational number , meaning it cannot be written as the ratio of two real numbers and the digits after the decimal continues to infinity. In order to find the digits of pi after the decimal, mathematicians use what is called a series representation - adding infinitely many digits. However, using even the most ...

               Physicists set a limit on the uncertainty of the s ubatomic particle's position. cientists used a superconducting sensor chip (shown) to detect the energy of atoms recoiling after they decayed within a layer of tantalum on the sensor. That measurement helped set a limit on a quantum property of neutrinos, which are also emitted in the decay. Neutrinos are known for funny business. Now scientists have set a new limit on a quantum trait responsible for the subatomic particles’ quirkiness: uncertainty. The lightweight particles morph from one variety of neutrino to another as they travel, a strange phenomenon called neutrino oscillation (SN: 10/6/15). That ability rests on quantum uncertainty, a sort of fuzziness intrinsic to the properties of quantum objects, such as their location or momentum. But despite the importance of quantum uncertainty, the uncertainty in the neutrino’s position has never been directly measured. “The ‘qu...

  The FORMOSA demonstrator (foreground) during installation in the underground cavern of the FASER experiment (background). The LHC family of experiments continues to grow. Alongside the four main experiments, a new generation of smaller experiments is contributing to the search for particles predicted by theories beyond the Standard Model, our current theory of particle physics. Recently, the FORMOSA demonstrator, which hunts for millicharged particles, has been installed in the cavern containing the FASER detector, 480 meters downstream from the ATLAS interaction point. It will now collect its first data. Some theories predict the existence of millicharged elementary particles that would have a charge much smaller than the electron charge. If they exist, they would give clues to a theory beyond the Standard Model and could be considered as candidates for dark matter. The FORMOSA demonstrator aims to prove the feasibility of the full experiment, which is intended to be installed...