Barbara Warmbein | 25 February 2010Sometimes detector projects that are still at a planning stage can tell detector projects that are already taking data what hardware to use. This is certainly the case when the R&D project has been using, trying and testing a technology that the 'old hand' is considering for its upgrade: a relatively new type of sensor called Silicon Photo Multiplier, or SiPM, developed in Russia. A meeting brought experts from all areas that use SiPMs together at DESY in Hamburg, Germany, for two days earlier this week.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: CALICE, DESY, HCal, Silicon Photo Multiplier, SiPM
11 February 2010The particle physics community is accustomed to global collaboration, and here at KEK, one of those collaborations has just begun on a core technology for the International Linear Collider (ILC), the superconducting accelerating system.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: KEK, S1-global
Rika Takahashi | 4 February 2010Even though the international collaboration in physics research has a long history, Europe-Asia cooperation remains quite weak, compared to the collaboration between Europe and Americas or Asia and Americas. To strengthen the cooperation in physics research between European and Asian countries, the first Asia-Europe Physics Summit, or ASEPS, will be held 24 to 26 March in Tsukuba, Japan.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: ASEPS, Asia, Europe
Barbara Warmbein | 28 January 2010Not all people who have the same goals use the same means to achieve them — just think of the two proposed electron-positron colliders ILC and CLIC. And not all people who use the same means also pursue the same goals. A workshop held in January at CERN in Geneva brought the two linear colliders and many of the world's light sources and B-factories together to discuss one common problem: how to make your beam as small and intense as possible to either produce more particle collisions or produce more brilliant light for your light source users, or in short: how to design or operate low-emittance rings.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: beam emittance, low emittance, low emittance ring
21 January 2010MEDFORD, NY — Today, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory and Advanced Energy Systems, Inc. of Medford, N.Y. (AES) celebrated the opening of a new hi-tech facility at the AES site that will produce crucial components used in particle accelerators around the world. Brookhaven Science Associates, which manages Brookhaven Lab for DOE, purchased equipment worth approximately $2 million as its contribution to the facility. AES invested in the infrastructure improvements it needed to expand its operations, assisted by a $200,000 grant from the Empire State Development Corporation.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: AES, Brookhaven
14 January 2010Last month the KEK facility in Japan hosted the ninth Project Meeting for the Accelerator Test Facility 2, or ATF2, and a few SLAC staff traveled overseas to participate. The group reviewed progress made in 2009, plans for 2010, and the possibility of extended studies beyond the primary ATF2 goals in 2011, 2012 and beyond. A total of 44 collaborators, including 28 from outside Japan, discussed the technical progress of the ATF2, which began commissioning in December of 2008. The program also covered the future of the project in the face of some major cuts to science funding bodies by the Japanese government.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: ATF2, Japan, KEK
7 January 2010A lively debate across age groups and cultures marked the Third Linear Collider Physics School, held in Ambleside, UK, in August. For the first time, designated discussion periods were set aside for up–and–coming scientists to share their work and opinions on the future of accelerator–based particle physics with international experts. The week–long event held at the Ambleside campus of the University of Cumbria in England expanded on the technical and physics issues of past schools with three discussion topics: the "big questions" in the field: electroweak, Higgs physics and accelerator physics; quantum chromodynamics, exotics and cosmology. The school was organised by Andre Sopczak of Lancaster University together with his colleagues Chris Bowdery and Jonathan Gratus.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: linear collider physics school, school
Rika Takahashi | 10 December 2009The 4th annual ILC detector workshop was held at KEK from 2 to 4 December. This series of workshops, led by Hitoshi Yamamoto, professor at Tohoku University, are funded by the Creative Scientific Research Program of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. This workshop marked the first after the validation of ILC detectors by the International Detector Advisory Group, and scientists discussed the global efforts toward the 'detailed baseline design' of ILC detector.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: ILC detector workshop, KEK
3 December 2009The research program at High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK) is facing a grave possibility of a severe budget cut, as recommended by the recently issued Public Budget Review by Japanese government. This affects Japanese renowned research programs including the ones hosted by KEK, such as elementary particle physics and related fields in astrophysics, material and life sciences. More than 260 universities and laboratories attend these programs. I would like to take this opportunity to explain to you what KEK is doing to enhance its research and education programs, and also would like to solicit your opinions. Science has played a crucial role in our society, contributing to our understanding of the world around us, and supplying knowledge bases to develop innovative technologies. The Japanese science community has made remarkable contributions to this effort. This is clearly seen in the Nobel Prize-winning works by Yukawa and Tomonaga in the past, and by Nambu, Kobayashi, Maskawa and Shimomura in 2008. These achievements have only been possible through public understanding of the importance of basic research and the support by our government. KEK is an "Inter-University Research Institute" that supports research programs with an emphasis of advanced, large-scale particle accelerators as the primary research platform. KEK has engaged in a wide range of research activities, such as the studies of the missing antimatter and the neutrino mass, the search for new materials for industrial applications, the structural protein analysis of influenza virus, the development of catalyst to be used for clean automobile engines, and others. KEK hosts around 6,000 visiting scientists annually from more than 160 universities and 100 laboratories, as well as 1,000 scientists from more than 50 countries. KEK is one of the major accelerator laboratories in the world to host global-scale, collaborative research programs in accelerator related science. KEK also provides more than 5,000 young students annually from elementary, mid-high and high schools as well as from colleges and universities with opportunities to acquaint themselves with the cutting edge research environment at the leading particle accelerators. KEK’s accelerator has provided the experimental confirmation of the Nobel Prize-winning Kobayashi-Maskawa theory, which continues to inspire young generations. It is a place for future scientists and engineers to get hands-on experience with the ongoing science by attending lectures and trying experiments. These experiences stimulate their interests in science, and help them think about their career. Needless to say, the wise use of funding and time available is our responsibility of utmost importance. It is particularly so in the difficult economic situation that we all face now. Unfortunately, the public review of the Japanese national budget in November, 2009 resulted in a recommendation that the "Special Educational and Research Fund" is to be significantly reduced. This funding accounts for more than 50% of the KEK's annual budget. If this reduction happens as per the recommendation, scientists at and around KEK would lose the research opportunities and a major outflow of research talent to overseas might ensue. Future recovery from this set-back could easily take years, and require greater amount of budget than the amount cut next year. Neglect of the importance of fundamental research could result in a long-term stagnation of our national competitiveness. We do our best to serve scientists from across the nation and around the world, to carry out the high-quality research programs with cutting-edge technologies by maintaining the world-class research facilities. We would like to hear your thoughts on our research programs. Please use the form below to tell us that you think by December 10.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: Japan, Japan budget, KEK
12 November 2009When you plan to move and try to find helpers, they often ask: to which floor? If the DESY people working in the detector lab would depend on the help of friends, they would have difficulties to find volunteers because the answer would be: seventh floor! Everything has to be transported from the ground floor to deep down underground. The HEP groups' detector lab moves from hall 5 to HERA hall west. In order to make room the electronics hut of the still present HERA-B detector was dismantled.
Category: Around the World | Tagged: DESY, HERA
