High Energy Physics at the IIT
Center for Accelerator and Particle Physics
The Center for Accelerator and Particle Physics (CAPP) provides a locus for interdisciplinary activities at Illinois Institute of Technology aimed at
CAPP serves as a base to coordinate the activities of a group of IIT faculty, graduate students, and staff from various departments currently involved in a number of research programs, and promotes a substantial increase in such involvement through a close working relationship with other universities in the region and with Fermilab.
- the continued development of research in elementary particle physics,
- developing new particle-accelerator technologies, and
- education and outreach both to educational institutions and to the wider business, philanthropic, and general-public sectors.
Click here for a list of CAPP-sponsored workshops and conferences.
Click here for a list of CAPP preprints.
Faculty: Ray Burnstein, Research Professor of Physics Dan Kaplan, Professor of Physics, Director, Center for Accelerator and Particle Physics Leon Lederman, 1988 Nobel Laureate in Physics and Pritzker Professor of Science Howard Rubin, Professor of Physics and Associate Chair of the Physics Division Chris White, Associate Professor of Physics Yagmur Torun, Assistant Professor of Physics Postdoc: Jeff deJong Technician: Bill Luebke Graduate students: Oleg Kamaev, Brandon Seilhan
The IIT High Energy Physics group currently includes six faculty, one postdoc, an electronics technician, two graduate students, and a number of part-time undergraduates. High Energy Physics is the study of matter at its most fundamental level. We know that the particles that make up the nuclei of atoms are themselves composed of quarks. Our research focuses on properties of neutrinos and strange (s), charm (c), and beauty (b) quarks, which we study in experiments at the nearby Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab), located 40 miles west of IIT. We are currently concentrating on the MINOS experiment and completing work on the HyperCP experiment (Fermilab E-871). We are also working on research and development for a possible Neutrino Factory and Muon Collider for the longer-term future.
The HyperCP experiment seeks to shed new light on the mysterious phenomenon known as CP violation -- the only effect known that distinguishes matter from antimatter -- and the mechanisms that led to a Universe made of matter rather than antimatter or pure energy. The original E-871 Proposal (450 kB PostScript file with an additional 23 MB in PostScript figures) details this ambitious experiment being undertaken by an international collaboration of physicists. The HyperCP experiment probes for evidence of CP violation in the decay of hyperons. So far this important effect has been observed only in the decay of the neutral K mesons, but current theoretical models predict that it should also be seen in other systems, including decays of hyperons and particles containing c and b quarks. Click here for a schematic diagram of the experimental apparatus and here for a non-technical description of the experiment. The second run of HyperCP took place in 1999 and analysis of the large resulting data set continues. ˆ
CAPP-sponsored Conferences and Workshops
- b20: In summer 1997 we hosted a Symposium in honor of the Twentieth Anniversary of the discovery of the beauty quark. Prof. Lederman led and Prof. Kaplan participated (as a graduate student) in the group that discovered the b quark at Fermilab in 1977. That discovery has now engendered a substantial effort in beauty experiments and theory. There is hope for a fundamental breakthrough in our understanding over the next several years from experiments now taking data or under construction.
- BEACH2004: We hosted the 6th International Conference on Hyperons, Charm & Beauty Hadrons (BEACH2004) in June, 2004.
- pbar2000: In late summer 2000, we hosted an international workshop to explore the feasibility of constructing a new, dedicated, antiproton storage ring at Fermilab that could offer a broad program in particle physics at relatively modest cost. For more information, please see the pbar2000 web page.
- Muon Instrumentation: We hosted an international Workshop on Instrumentation for Muon Cooling Studies November 10-11, 2000, and are continuing to play a leading role in developing such instrumentation.
- VLLC: Our Workshop on an e+e- Ring at VLHC was held at IIT on March 9-11, 2001.
- MUCOOL/MICE Collaboration meeting: We hosted a joint meeting of the MUCOOL and MICE Collaborations at IIT February 5-10, 2002.
- NFMCC meeting: We hosted a meeting of the Neutrino Factory and Muon Collider Collaboration at IIT March 12-15, 2006.
For further information on High Energy Physics at IIT, contact kaplan@iit.edu.
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Last Modified Monday, 15-Jan-2007 by IITHEP WebMaster