X-ray imaging is a widely used technique to image the interior of materials – anyone who has had their teeth or another part of their body X-rayed will be familiar with the images it produces. Less used is neutron imaging, which is better than X-ray imaging in some cases, for example imaging the interior of dense metals. The reason is that neutron beams that are intense enough for imaging are not easy to produce and are available at only a few facilities worldwide.

The n_TOF facility at CERN has two intense neutron beams and normally uses them to study interactions between neutrons and atomic nuclei. However, the facility has recently started to explore the feasibility of also using one of its beams for imaging. And the first results from this exploration look good: imaging of particle-producing targets that have been used or are designed to be used at the neighbouring Antiproton Decelerator (AD) to produce antiprotons (the antiparticles of protons) has shown that the beam can reveal the samples’ internal structure.

Neutron imaging is based on recording the attenuation of a neutron beam as it passes through a sample. The quality of the resulting image depends on several factors, including the energy of the neutrons at the sample’s position and the distance between the sample and the collimator that focuses the beam. Using a commercially available neutron-imaging camera, the n_TOF researchers set up a neutron-imaging station at n_TOF and analysed some of these factors. They then set out to test the imaging station with five antiproton-producing targets: two targets from the AD, which produces antiprotons by taking an intense proton beam from the Proton Synchrotron accelerator and firing it into a target made of dense metal; and three potential new targets for the AD that had previously been tested at the HiRadMat facility.

One of the two AD targets was a spare, never used, whereas the other AD target and the three HiRadMat targets had been subjected to intense proton beams that could have damaged them. The n_TOF imaging of the targets showed their internal structure with good contrast and, in the case of the targets that had been exposed to proton beams, revealed deformation, bending or cracking of their interior. For two of the targets, the damage observed was confirmed by opening the target, and for one of these targets the damage was also confirmed by imaging at a neutron-imaging station at the Paul Scherrer Institute.

The results served two purposes: they demonstrated the feasibility of using n_TOF’s neutron beam for imaging and they offered two-dimensional images of the inside of the antiproton-producing targets that would otherwise have been more difficult to obtain. Conventional imaging techniques such as X-ray imaging cannot penetrate the dense metals from which the targets are made to reveal their internal state and, if they were to be imaged with specialised imaging facilities outside of CERN, the targets would need to be transported and subjected to inspection before being handled.

The next steps towards developing a full-fledged imaging station at n_TOF include improving the collimation system, which would lead to higher-resolution images, and adding equipment that would allow three-dimensional rather than two-dimensional images to be obtained.

Geneva and Ghent. At the 2019 European Physical Society’s High-Energy Physics conference (EPS-HEP) taking place in Ghent, Belgium, the ATLAS and CMS collaborations presented a suite of new results. These include several analyses using the full dataset from the second run of CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC), recorded at a collision energy of 13 TeV between 2015 and 2018. Among the highlights are the latest precision measurements involving the Higgs boson. In only seven years since its discovery, scientists have carefully studied several of the properties of this unique particle, which is increasingly becoming a powerful tool in the search for new physics.

The results include new searches for transformations (or “decays”) of the Higgs boson into pairs of muons and into pairs of charm quarks. Both ATLAS and CMS also measured previously unexplored properties of decays of the Higgs boson that involve electroweak bosons (the W, the Z and the photon) and compared these with the predictions of the Standard Model (SM) of particle physics. ATLAS and CMS will continue these studies over the course of the LHC’s Run 3 (2021 to 2023) and in the era of the High-Luminosity LHC (from 2026 onwards).

The Higgs boson is the quantum manifestation of the all-pervading Higgs field, which gives mass to elementary particles it interacts with, via the Brout-Englert-Higgs mechanism. Scientists look for such interactions between the Higgs boson and elementary particles, either by studying specific decays of the Higgs boson or by searching for instances where the Higgs boson is produced along with other particles. The Higgs boson decays almost instantly after being produced in the LHC and it is by looking through its decay products that scientists can probe its behaviour.

In the LHC’s Run 1 (2010 to 2012), decays of the Higgs boson involving pairs of electroweak bosons were observed. Now, the complete Run 2 dataset – around 140 inverse femtobarns each, the equivalent of over 10 000 trillion collisions – provides a much larger sample of Higgs bosons to study, allowing measurements of the particle’s properties to be made with unprecedented precision. ATLAS and CMS have measured the so-called “differential cross-sections” of the bosonic decay processes, which look at not just the production rate of Higgs bosons but also the distribution and orientation of the decay products relative to the colliding proton beams. These measurements provide insight into the underlying mechanism that produces the Higgs bosons. Both collaborations determined that the observed rates and distributions are compatible with those predicted by the Standard Model, at the current rate of statistical uncertainty.

Since the strength of the Higgs boson’s interaction is proportional to the mass of elementary particles, it interacts most strongly with the heaviest generation of fermions, the third. Previously, ATLAS and CMS had each observed these interactions. However, interactions with the lighter second-generation fermions – muons, charm quarks and strange quarks – are considerably rarer. At EPS-HEP, both collaborations reported on their searches for the elusive second-generation interactions.

ATLAS presented their first result from searches for Higgs bosons decaying to pairs of muons (H→μμ) with the full Run 2 dataset. This search is complicated by the large background of more typical SM processes that produce pairs of muons. “This result shows that we are now close to the sensitivity required to test the Standard Model’s predictions for this very rare decay of the Higgs boson,” says Karl Jakobs, the ATLAS spokesperson. “However, a definitive statement on the second generation will require the larger datasets that will be provided by the LHC in Run 3 and by the High-Luminosity LHC.”

CMS presented their first result on searches for decays of Higgs bosons to pairs of charm quarks (H→cc). When a Higgs boson decays into quarks, these elementary particles immediately produce jets of particles. “Identifying jets formed by charm quarks and isolating them from other types of jets is a huge challenge,” says Roberto Carlin, spokesperson for CMS. “We’re very happy to have shown that we can tackle this difficult decay channel. We have developed novel machine-learning techniques to help with this task.”

The Higgs boson also acts as a mediator of physics processes in which electroweak bosons scatter or bounce off each other. Studies of these processes with very high statistics serve as powerful tests of the Standard Model. ATLAS presented the first-ever measurement of the scattering of two Z bosons. Observing this scattering completes the picture for the W and Z bosons as ATLAS has previously observed the WZ scattering process and both collaborations the WW processes. CMS presented the first observation of electroweak-boson scattering that results in the production of a Z boson and a photon.

“The experiments are making big strides in the monumental task of understanding the Higgs boson,” says Eckhard Elsen, CERN’s Director of Research and Computing. “After observation of its coupling to the third-generation fermions, the experiments have now shown that they have the tools at hand to address the even more challenging second generation. The LHC’s precision physics programme is in full swing.”

• ATLAS:
  • Summary of 2019 EPS-HEP results: https://atlas.cern/updates/atlas-news/new-results-eps-2019
  • Physics briefings on 2019 EPS-HEP results: https://atlas.cern/tags/eps-2019
  • Physics publications: https://twiki.cern.ch/twiki/bin/view/AtlasPublic/Publications
• CMS:
  • Summary of 2019 EPS-HEP results: https://cms.cern/news/EPS-HEP2019
  • Physics briefings on 2019 EPS-HEP results: https://cms.cern/tags/cms-physics-briefings-eps-hep-2019
  • Physics publications: http://cern.ch/cms-results/public-results/publications/

It is 100 years since Ernest Rutherford published his results proving the existence of the proton. For decades, the proton was considered an elementary particle. But ever since researchers at the SLAC and DESY laboratories began firing electrons into protons, beginning in the 1960s, experiments have revealed that the proton has a complex internal structure, one that depends on how you look at it, or rather on how hard you hit it. A century on, however, much remains to be learnt about the proton. Check out the latest edition of the CERN Courier and read in-depth articles about what we know and don’t know about the proton.

In “Rutherford, transmutation and the proton”, you’ll find an account of the historical events leading to Ernest Rutherford’s discovery of the proton, published in 1919. In “The proton laid bare”, you can read about scientists’ evolving knowledge of the proton, how a deeper understanding may be key to the search for new physics phenomena, and what remains to be learnt – including the origin of the proton’s spin, whether or not the proton decays on long timescales, and the puzzling, although soon-to-be resolved, value of its radius.

Until today, a kilogram was defined as the mass of the International Prototype Kilogram (IPK), a platinum–iridium cylinder located in Paris, France. While all the other base units of the International System of Units (SI) had been redefined over the years based on fundamental constants of nature or atomic properties, the kilogram had remained since the late 19th century the only one to rely on a human-made artefact.

This changes today, and metrologists – those who study measurement – are excited. On the occasion of World Metrology Day, which commemorates the signing of the Metre Convention back in 1875, the kilogram has been given a new definition. From now on, it will be defined based on the most precise measurement ever made of the Planck constant, which can be expressed in terms of the SI units kilogram, metre and second. Since the latter two units are already defined by constants of nature, the value of a kilogram can be obtained without relying on comparing it with a physical reference block.

But measuring the Planck constant to a suitably high precision of ten parts per billion required decades of work by international teams across continents, and CERN played a small part in the endeavour.

In 1975, British physicist Bryan Kibble proposed a device, then known as a watt balance and now called the Kibble balance in his honour, which would allow the Planck constant to be measured precisely based on the IPK. Once the precision was achieved, the Planck constant’s value could be fixed and the definitions inverted, removing the kilogram’s dependence on the IPK. Several Kibble balances around the world were constructed to compare measurements, including one in Switzerland. METAS, the Swiss Federal Institute of Metrology, has been working on their Kibble balance project for almost two decades, the activity being led by Ali Eichenberger and Henri Baumann. Knowing CERN’s expertise in magnet systems, Eichenberger and Baumann reached out to the Laboratory to help prepare the required magnets.

“I am extremely proud to have participated in this adventure,” says Davide Tommasini from CERN’s Magnets, Superconductors and Cryostats group, who was directly involved in the project. “I do not know if the redefinition of the kilogram has a direct impact on the experiments at CERN, but the past teaches us that there are many new advancements which, at their initial moment, may not appear in their whole potential.”

In 2018, the Kibble balance in Canada measured the Planck constant with necessary ultrahigh precision, allowing a combination of measurements from around the world to help fix its value. But does it affect the value of the kilogram itself? Not really. “The Plank constant has been fixed at 6.626070150 × 10⁻³⁴ kg⋅m²/s using the IPK as standard,” explains Eichenberger. “So from today, one kilogram will stay the same. If the IPK drifts further with time then its value will change, but any mass calibration will have an uncertainty of the order of 20 parts per billion.”

So while it is a momentous occasion worthy of celebration, you won’t have to recalibrate your bathroom scales just yet.

The Proton Synchrotron (PS), which was CERN’s first synchrotron and which turns 60 this year, once held the record for the particle accelerator with the highest energy. Today, it forms a key link in CERN’s accelerator complex, mainly accelerating protons to 26 GeV before sending them to the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS), but also delivering particles to several experimental areas such as the Antiproton Decelerator (AD). Over the course of Long Shutdown 2 (LS2), the PS will undergo a major overhaul to prepare it for the higher injection and beam intensities of the LHC’s Run 3 as well as for the High-Luminosity LHC.

One major component of the PS that will be consolidated is the magnet system. The synchrotron has a total of 100 main magnets within it (plus one reference magnet unit outside the ring), which bend and focus the particle beams as they whizz around it gaining energy. “During the last long shutdown (LS1) and at the beginning of LS2, the TE-MSC team performed various tests to identify weak points in the magnets,” explains Fernando Pedrosa, who is coordinating the LS2 work on the PS. The team identified 50 magnets needing refurbishment, of which seven were repaired during LS1 itself. “The remaining 43 magnets that need attention will be refurbished this year.”

Specifically, one of the elements, known as the pole-face windings, which is located between the beam pipe and the magnet yoke, needs replacing. In order to reach into the magnet innards to replace these elements, the magnet units have to be transferred to a workshop in building 151. Once disconnected, each magnet is placed onto a small locomotive system that drives them to the workshops. The locomotives themselves are over 50 years old, and their movement must be delicately managed. It takes ten hours to extract one magnet. So far, six magnets have been taken to the workshop and this work will last until 18 October 2019.

The workshop where the magnets are being treated is divided into two sections. In the first room, the vacuum chamber of the magnets is cut so as to access the pole-face windings. The magnet units are then taken to the second room, where prefabricated replacements are installed.

As mentioned in the previous LS2 Report, the PS Booster will see an increase in the energy it imparts to accelerating protons, from 1.4 GeV to 2 GeV. A new set of quadrupole magnets will be installed along the Booster-to-PS injection line, to increase the focusing strength required for the higher-energy beams. Higher-energy beams require higher-energy injection elements; therefore some elements will be replaced in the PS injection region as part of the LHC Injectors Upgrade (LIU) project, namely septum 42, kicker 45 and five bumper magnets.

Other improvements as part of the LIU project include the new cooling systems being installed to increase the cooling capacity of the PS. A new cooling station is being built at building 355, while one cooling tower in building 255 is being upgraded. The TT2 line, which is involved in the transfer from the PS to the SPS, will have its cooling system decoupled from the Booster’s, to allow the PS to operate independent of the Booster schedule. “The internal dumps of the PS, which are used in case the beam needs to be stopped, are also being changed, as are some other intercepting devices,” explains Pedrosa.

The LS2 operations are on a tight schedule,” notes Pedrosa, pointing out that works being performed on several interconnected systems create constraints for what can be done concurrently. As LS2 proceeds, we will bring you more news about the PS, including the installation of new instrumentation in wire scanners that help with beam-size measurement, an upgraded transverse-feedback system to stabilise the beam and more.

More pictures of the PS magnets are available on CDS: