Researchers at CERN (Conseil européen pour la recherche nucléaire, or European Organization for Nuclear Research) are firing up the Large Hadron Collider for a third time, hoping to make another historic discovery.
Ten years ago, a team operating the particle collider discovered the Higgs boson particle, a finding key to understanding the creation of the universe. The Higgs boson is the particle associated with the Higgs field, a field that gives mass to the things that travel through it. Now, after more than three years of upgrades to the machinery that discovered the Higgs boson, scientists are collecting data again to prove the existence of dark matter.
Though scientists believe dark matter is real, none have been able to observe or create it. Now, with data collection and power upgrades to the particle smasher, researchers could have one of their best chances at visualizing and understanding the substance.
“If we can figure out the properties of dark matter, we learn what our galaxy is made of,” said Joshua Ruderman, an associate professor of physics at New York University. “It would be transformative.”
Dark matter is believed to make up a significant part of the universe and learning more about it could provide physicists clues on how the universe started. All the stars, planets, and galaxies make up only five percent of the universe’s matter, and approximately twenty-seven percent of the universe is thought to be composed of dark matter, which does not absorb, reflect, or emit light, making it hard to observe. However, researchers think that dark matter exists because they have seen its gravitational pull on objects and how it helps bend light.
The collider is expected to help researchers discover dark matter. It is located roughly 328 feet underground, in a tunnel near the French-Swiss border and the city of Geneva, and its circumference spans 17 miles.
Inside the collider, superconducting magnets are chilled to roughly 456 degrees Fahrenheit below zero, a temperature colder than in space, while two particle beams traveling at a speed close to the speed of light collide. Using sensors and monitors, scientists collect and analyze data from the substances created by the collision, which replicates conditions similar to the Big Bang. This simulates the early moments of the universe and allows scientists to learn more about that event.
The machine started working in 2008 and has been shut down several times for upgrades and enhancements that improve its data collection and speed. Now, the accelerator can run at its highest energy level, 13.6 trillion electron volts, allowing scientists to run bigger, more complicated experiments that could yield surprising results in particle physics.
During the collider’s four-year experiment, researchers are hoping to find evidence of dark matter. They hope that particles resembling dark matter would be created when the particles in the experiment collide and to learn more about how the Higgs boson particle behaves. Last Tuesday, shortly after the collider began collecting data, scientists at CERN announced that they have discovered three new particles that could provide clues as to how subatomic particles bind together.
“High-energy colliders remain the most powerful microscope at our disposal to explore nature at the smallest scales and to discover the fundamental laws that govern the universe,” said Gian Giudice, head of CERN’s theory department.
Once data comes out of the experiment, scientists will start analyzing the particles (if there are any created) and determining whether they resemble dark matter. They would have to determine whether the particle emits light, shows signs of existing for a long time, and behaves similarly to current theories of dark matter.
If CERN scientists do not discover dark matter in four years, the Large Hadron Collider will undergo three more years of upgrades. The next round of data collection and experiments would be in 2029 if this happens.
Ten years ago, a team operating the particle collider discovered the Higgs boson particle, a finding key to understanding the creation of the universe. The Higgs boson is the particle associated with the Higgs field, a field that gives mass to the things that travel through it. Now, after more than three years of upgrades to the machinery that discovered the Higgs boson, scientists are collecting data again to prove the existence of dark matter.
Though scientists believe dark matter is real, none have been able to observe or create it. Now, with data collection and power upgrades to the particle smasher, researchers could have one of their best chances at visualizing and understanding the substance.
“If we can figure out the properties of dark matter, we learn what our galaxy is made of,” said Joshua Ruderman, an associate professor of physics at New York University. “It would be transformative.”
Dark matter is believed to make up a significant part of the universe and learning more about it could provide physicists clues on how the universe started. All the stars, planets, and galaxies make up only five percent of the universe’s matter, and approximately twenty-seven percent of the universe is thought to be composed of dark matter, which does not absorb, reflect, or emit light, making it hard to observe. However, researchers think that dark matter exists because they have seen its gravitational pull on objects and how it helps bend light.
The collider is expected to help researchers discover dark matter. It is located roughly 328 feet underground, in a tunnel near the French-Swiss border and the city of Geneva, and its circumference spans 17 miles.
Inside the collider, superconducting magnets are chilled to roughly 456 degrees Fahrenheit below zero, a temperature colder than in space, while two particle beams traveling at a speed close to the speed of light collide. Using sensors and monitors, scientists collect and analyze data from the substances created by the collision, which replicates conditions similar to the Big Bang. This simulates the early moments of the universe and allows scientists to learn more about that event.
The machine started working in 2008 and has been shut down several times for upgrades and enhancements that improve its data collection and speed. Now, the accelerator can run at its highest energy level, 13.6 trillion electron volts, allowing scientists to run bigger, more complicated experiments that could yield surprising results in particle physics.
During the collider’s four-year experiment, researchers are hoping to find evidence of dark matter. They hope that particles resembling dark matter would be created when the particles in the experiment collide and to learn more about how the Higgs boson particle behaves. Last Tuesday, shortly after the collider began collecting data, scientists at CERN announced that they have discovered three new particles that could provide clues as to how subatomic particles bind together.
“High-energy colliders remain the most powerful microscope at our disposal to explore nature at the smallest scales and to discover the fundamental laws that govern the universe,” said Gian Giudice, head of CERN’s theory department.
Once data comes out of the experiment, scientists will start analyzing the particles (if there are any created) and determining whether they resemble dark matter. They would have to determine whether the particle emits light, shows signs of existing for a long time, and behaves similarly to current theories of dark matter.
If CERN scientists do not discover dark matter in four years, the Large Hadron Collider will undergo three more years of upgrades. The next round of data collection and experiments would be in 2029 if this happens.
