Investigating Nucleon Structure and Phenomena Beyond the Standard Model

研究标准模型之外的核子结构和现象

• 批准号: 1505934
• 负责人: Michael Kohl
• 金额: $ 10.5万
• 依托单位: Hampton University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2015-08-01 至 2018-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1505934&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Investigating; Nucleon; Structure; Phenomena; Beyond

Despite its numerous successes the Standard Model of Particle Physics is known to be incomplete, implying that there exists important physics beyond. As an example, there is strong evidence from astronomical observations for the existence of so-called dark matter. The known particles of the Standard Model make up only a small fraction of the total matter in the Universe. Very little is known about the nature of dark matter. A number of experiments are underway or in the planning stage to look for dark matter manifesting itself in a new type of particle. A technically demanding experiment at Jefferson Lab, called DarkLight, has been proposed to specifically search for the production of a so-called dark photon in the scattering of electrons from protons. If such a particle were to exist, it would lead to new physics beyond the Standard Model, and hence would be transformative in our understanding of the matter distribution of the Universe.This grant is for work on the DarkLight phase I lepton tracker, to be built as a set of Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) detectors, a relatively new technology for which the group has developed expertise in recent years with the involvement in the OLYMPUS and MUSE projects. The NSF funded the DarkLight phase-I apparatus through a Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) grant, and the experiment is expected to take place at Jefferson Lab in 2016-2017. This award provides support for one graduate student to pursue a PhD on this project. One part of the PhD thesis will have a hardware focus with the construction and implementation of the lepton tracker into the DarkLight phase I apparatus. The second focus of the thesis will be the running, simulation and analysis of DarkLight phase I data, with three distinctive scientific goals: 1) studies with the Energy Recovery Linac at Jefferson Lab, 2) measurement of Standard Model processes in DarkLight, and 3) search for a new particle called the A'.

尽管取得了许多成功，但众所周知，粒子物理学的标准模型是不完整的，这表明存在重要的物理学。例如，从天文学观察结果中有强有力的证据表明存在所谓的暗物质。标准模型的已知粒子仅占宇宙总物质的一小部分。对暗物质的本质知之甚少。正在进行许多实验或计划阶段，以寻找在新型粒子中表现出来的暗物质。已经提出了一个名为Darklight的技术要求的实验，该实验已被提出，以专门搜索来自质子电子的散射中所谓的暗光子的生产。如果存在这样的粒子，它将导致超出标准模型的新物理学，因此在我们对宇宙物质分布的理解中会具有变革性。这项赠款是在Darklight I阶段I Lepton Tracker上的工作作为一组燃气电子乘数（GEM）探测器建造，这是一项相对较新的技术，该小组近年来又在Olympus和Muse Projects的参与下开发了专业知识。 NSF通过主要的研究工具（MRI）赠款资助了Darklight I期工具，预计该实验将于2016 - 2017年在Jefferson Lab举行。该奖项为一名研究生攻读该项目的博士学位提供了支持。博士学位论文的一部分将以硬件的重点，将Lepton Tracker的构建和实施到Darklight I阶段I设备中。论文的第二个重点将是对黑暗I期数据的运行，模拟和分析，具有三个独特的科学目标：1）在杰斐逊实验室的能量恢复的研究，2）测量darklight中的标准模型过程，以及3 ）搜索称为A'的新粒子。