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Summer 2013, Number 3 Department of Physics Newsletter OXFORD THELARGE HADRON&COLLIDER Professor Sir Chris Oxford physicists have played important roles in the Large Hadron Collider since its Llewellyn Smith inception, as Chris Llewellyn Smith (Chairman of Oxford Physics 1987-92, Director FRS General of CERN 1994-98, and currently Oxford’s Director of Energy Research and Ironically, it was President of the Council of SESAME – Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science attempts to and Applications in the Middle East) explains. stop it being started up, on the grounds that it might destabilise headed ‘Don’t panic, there’s time Science is named) first argued During the 1980s the LHC torch the universe or create black holes to try out every position in the that if the Large Electron Positron was kept burning by Carlo Rubbia, that could destroy the world, that Kama Sutra’, listed ‘what you Collider (LEP) was ever built, my predecessor as Director first made the LHC front page could get up to before it’s too the tunnel should be kept wide General of CERN, in the face of news. Under the headline ‘End of late’: I found number six – ‘Drive enough to accommodate a potential competition from the the world due in nine days’, the to Switzerland for a ringside seat proton accelerator later. Possible higher energy Superconducting Sun (1 September 2008) gave of doomsday’– redundant as I physics at the LHC, which now Super Collider. The SSC was quite a good explanation of why already had a plane ticket, but the occupies the 27km LEP tunnel, approved in 1987 for construction the doomsters were wrong and last – ‘Cancel the milk and papers’ was first discussed in depth at a in Texas, but it had rather shaky a brief description of the LHC’s – was helpful as I might have workshop in Lausanne in March political foundations and was aims (‘New particles are expected forgotten. 1984, following which I gave eventually cancelled in late to be discovered… as scientists the theoretical summary talk in 1993. The LHC was also strongly re-create conditions in the first Three decades earlier, John a packed CERN auditorium. In promoted by Sir William (Bill) billionths of a second after the Big Adams (after whom Oxford’s John 1984, when excavation of the Mitchell, Dr Lee’s Professor of Bang’). An accompanying column, Adams Institute for Accelerator tunnel had only just begun, it Experimental Philosophy (1978- was impossible to anticipate 92), who headed the Clarendon what would be exciting beyond Lab from 1978 to 1985 when he LEP (which operated from 1989 was seconded full time to chair through 2000) although it was the Science and Engineering clear that the LHC would open Research Council, in which up a huge new domain. But capacity he served as a UK experiments at LEP and elsewhere delegate to the CERN Council, only sharpened the burning which he chaired from 1991 to questions of 1984, by showing 1993. Bill convened a special that the so-called Standard open meeting of the Council in Model of particle physics works December 1991 at which the LHC with exquisite accuracy while was presented to the member clearly being incomplete, and the states of CERN for the first time. As LHC is doing much of what we Chair of the CERN Scientific Policy originally discussed – albeit much Committee (1990-92), I presented

© CERN / COURTESY PROF LLEWELLYN SMITH LLEWELLYN PROF COURTESY / CERN © better as the performance of the the scientific case. At the end of ‘One day the LHC Project Leader (Lyn Evans) came to my office and told collider and the detectors, and the the meeting Bill declared that me that there was one design choice that I could take on my own – the ability to analyse the data, have ‘The LHC is the right machine for colour of the 14m long 8.4 Tesla superconducting dipole magnets. exceeded all expectations. Naturally I chose the option closest to Oxford blue.’ Continued on page 2...

INSIDE: LIFE AFTER DISCOVERY • PLANCK SATELLITE MAPS THE EARLY UNIVERSE • STARGAZING OXFORD • NOTES FROM THE HEAD OF PHYSICS • NEWS AND EVENTS • ALUMNI STORIES • www.physics.ox.ac.uk CIRCUIT DEVICE TREATS SEVERE SLEEP DISORDER • COMINGS, GOINGS AND AWARDS... SCIENCE NEWS www.physics.ox.ac.uk/research

Oxford was responsible for the assembly and testing of Oxford and the Large Hadron Collider all four barrel layers of the Continued from page 1... SemiConductor Tracker (SCT) while also contributing the advance of the subject and a few weeks before I took over to a number of other the future of CERN’, and asked for from Carlo as Director General. components... more detailed information on the It is often claimed that the LHC project before the end of 1993 ‘so ‘was built to find the Higgs that Council may move towards a boson’ but actually the proposal decision on the LHC’. stressed first that it would open up a new domain. In words Meanwhile, starting around 1990, that I used a few years later in a CERN orchestrated a vigorous Scientific American article: ‘The R&D programme designed LHC’s projectiles will penetrate to enable the construction of even deeper into the heart of detectors that can withstand matter, down to 10-19 metres. This the radiation levels and handle alone would be enough to whet the unprecedented data rates at scientific appetites, but pulses are the LHC. It succeeded beyond

really set racing by compelling SMITH LLEWELLYN PROF COURTESY / CERN © our dreams, and the two giant arguments that the answers to general purpose LHC detectors Above: The ATLAS inner tracking detector is crucial to identifying the major questions must lie in this photons, W bosons, and Z bosons, that were used to demonstrate are able to disentangle the debris new domain that the LHC data the existence of a new boson. The semiconductor tracker is a main produced during bunch-bunch will illuminate’. component of the inner detector and was constructed at Oxford. crossings in which on average 35 Shown here is one section of the tracker completed at Oxford and proton-proton collisions, each The CERN Council, led by ready to be sent to Geneva, Switzerland, for installation at ATLAS. producing some 100 particles, Germany and the UK, set stringent Oxford physicists have been making key contributions to ATLAS since occur effectively simultaneously conditions for approving the LHC, its inception more than 20 years ago. every 50 nanoseconds in a space including asking for economies of a few centimetres. In parallel, beyond those already offered. responsible for the assembly and In addition to ATLAS and CMS, groups wishing to construct After very tough discussions, testing of all four barrel layers there are two other large LHC detectors were starting to form. the Council approved the LHC in of the SemiConductor Tracker detectors – ALICE, which is Tony Weidberg, who joined December 1994 for construction (SCT), while also contributing to optimised to analyse collisions Oxford Physics in 1989, was a in two stages, with the condition a number of other components of heavy nuclei that produce founder member of the EAGLE that ‘any contributions from non- and developing the trigger to the hot soup of quarks and collaboration. EAGLE merged Members will be used to speed up identify events in which tau gluons that is thought to have with another collaboration to and improve the project, not to leptons are produced or part of dominated the universe for a form ATLAS shortly after a major allow reductions in the member the energy carried away in the few millionths of a second after workshop at Evian in early 1992, states’ contributions’. This pledge, transverse direction is invisible. the Big Bang, and LHCb, which is which was broken in 1996, when The SCT is essential for all ATLAS designed to study the decays of Germany (which was suffering physics results, and played a particles containing bottom (b) Oxford built the front-end from the economic impact of key role in finding electron and quarks, that are very sensitive to electronics and superstructure re-unification) strongly supported muon tracks produced when a possible small effects that could of LHCb’s RICH-1 detector, by the UK (where there was then Higgs boson decays into two reveal new physics beyond the which was assembled a strong dislike of high energy weak vector bosons WW or ZZ Standard Model. Neville Harnew, physics in Whitehall), turned out underground at CERN. (Oxford played a leading role in who joined Oxford Physics in to be very useful in negotiating analysing the WW decay mode), 1986, was a founding member contributions to the collider and the tracks of photons that of the LHCb collaboration, which at which I gave the introductory from Japan, the USA and other convert in the detector in the formed in 1995 following the talk, during which the outlines non-member states. At the end of major discovery channel in which merger of three earlier proposals. of the experimental programme 1996, after we had put together a Higgs boson decays into two Oxford led the construction of that is now underway at the LHC substantial support from around photons. Both Tony Weidberg and LHCb’s Ring-Imaging Cherenkov became clear. ATLAS is one of the the world, the Council approved Richard Nickerson have played (RICH) detector system, which two giant detectors (Oxford is not the construction of the LHC in a important leadership roles in provides particle identification involved in the other, CMS) which single stage, albeit simultaneously ATLAS, including being ATLAS-UK for the experiment, and built announced the first evidence for cutting the CERN budget (for an Project Leaders, while Cigdem the front-end electronics for the the discovery of a (perhaps the) account of the battle to get the Issever was convenor of the RICHes. Oxford physicists played Higgs boson last year. LHC approved and bring non- Exotics group, and Alan Barr has a key role in the first analysis of member states on board, see The preparation of the proposal been and Chris Hays is UK Physics important charge-conjugation Nature 281, 448, 2007). to build the LHC, and a complete Convenor. Today Oxford has nine plus parity (CP) violation long-term plan for CERN, was During the 1990s the design academic staff, four post-docs, five parameters in both b and charm delegated to me by Carlo Rubbia, of ATLAS, which was formally engineers and fifteen graduate quark decays (CP violation is and I presented the proposal to approved in 1997, matured and students involved in ATLAS. believed to be responsible for the Council in December 1993, construction began. Oxford was matter dominating anti-matter

2 | Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 SCIENCE NEWS www.physics.ox.ac.uk/research

Oxford and the Large Hadron Collider Life after discovery Continued from page 1... Dr Alan Barr & Dr Chris Hays in the universe, although the On 10 September 2008 bunches The run-up to the discovery of CP violation observed in b and of particles first circulated the the Higgs boson involved much c decays is not large enough to LHC, without a hitch, and the anticipation, drama, and excitement. do the job). Neville has filled a Evening Standard’s bill-board There were setbacks, such as an number of important leadership announced ‘World Survives incident in 2008 with the accelerator roles in LHCb, including being “Big Bang”’ although the beams that shut down the LHC for a year, and false alarms, such as the 2011 the UK Principal Investigator had not been brought into the rumours of evidence for a new boson with a mass of 115 GeV at and Chair of the Collaboration collisions that the doomsters had ATLAS. Finally, in July 2012, a discovery was confirmed: a new boson Board, while Guy Wilkinson has tried to prevent. Alas, nine days had been independently observed with five-sigma confidence by been Physics Coordinator. Two later an electrical fault in one of both the ATLAS and CMS experiments. The new particle has a mass Advanced Fellows, three post- some 10,000 spliced joints had of about 125 GeV and properties broadly consistent with those of doctoral Fellows, an engineer catastrophic knock-on effects, the Higgs boson. After many years of gruelling preparation, and and around 10 research students and repairs and improvements to many sleepless nights, physicists began asking the same question are also involved in LHCb. Oxford ensure against repetitions took as much of the public: now what?

© CERN / COURTESY PROF LLEWELLYN SMITH LLEWELLYN PROF COURTESY / CERN © support staff have made crucial until November 2009, when the contributions to the success of LHC re-started and first collisions It turns out that there is in fact much more to be done; a path both ATLAS and LHCb. were produced. equally as challenging, but with much less fanfare. The new boson’s properties must be measured with sufficient accuracy to test the The ALICE and LHCb proposals Since then the LHC and the many predictions of the Standard Model of particle physics. The were guided to final approval experiments have performed Standard Model provides a precise relation between the mass of by Roger Cashmore (Chairman beyond expectations. The a given particle and the decay rate of the Higgs boson to a pair of of Oxford Physics 1996-98) who, announcement of the discovery such particles. Measurements with percent precision would match as CERN’s Research Director of a (quite likely the) Higgs boson the accuracy of the predictions, testing whether the observed (1999-2003), put in place the on 4 July 2012 came much earlier Higgs boson is responsible for all, or just a fraction, of the known agreements that govern the than projected (on the basis that fundamental particles’ masses. Today we are far from this goal: the maintenance and operation of all it existed). But it was only the precision of Higgs boson’s decay rates to the W and Z bosons of the LHC detectors and facilitated beginning. Far more data will be the electroweak force is of order 30%, while Higgs boson decays agreement on how they should accumulated at the full design to fermions like b-quarks and tau-leptons have not even been be funded to completion. Roger energy (which has not yet been conclusively observed. A long-term programme of Higgs boson also oversaw establishment of reached) in the years to come. measurements at the LHC will reduce the uncertainties below 10%, the Grid Computing system that Hopes are high that, in addition but percent-level precision may only be achieved at a new electron- links computers across the world, to elucidating the exact nature positron collider. The construction of such a collider has been which has enabled the amazingly of the new particle that has been under discussion for more than a decade, and is receiving renewed rapid analysis of the petabytes discovered, The LHC will provide attention. of data that the LHC produces. unique insights into the nature When the LHC was proposed, I of matter and the structure of used to joke that it was a good the universe (as asserted in the Continued on page 4... thing that it would take at least proposal that I presented in 1993) 10 years to build as it would not with Oxford physicists, who are be possible to analyse the data currently playing leading roles without a decade of the increase in designing upgrades of both in computing power predicted ATLAS and LHCb, deeply involved. by Moore’s law, plus something More on Oxford’s contributions to else – which CERN, the lab where ATLAS and LHCb, and the results the World Wide Web was invented they have produced, can be found (by Oxford trained physicist Tim on the Oxford Physics web page Berners-Lee), duly produced in the www.physics.ox.ac.uk/research/ form of the Grid. atlas.

THE HIGGS BOSON IN YOUR HAND COLLIDER IS A MOBILE APPLICATION THAT LETS YOU VIEW HIGH ENERGY PARTICLE COLLISIONS DIRECTLY FROM THE LARGE HADRON COLLIDER • VIEW LIVE EVENTS, STRAIGHT FROM THE ATLAS DETECTOR AT CERN

• FIND OUT HOW TO IDENTIFY DIFFERENT PARTICLES PHYSICS OF DEPT / GRONBECH P. © Above: The Tier 2 center at Oxford is part of the worldwide • HUNT FOR THE HIGGS BOSON computing grid, which was essential for quickly processing and HTTP://COLLIDER.PHYSICS.OX.AC.UK analysing the LHC data used for the Higgs boson discovery.

Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 | 3 SCIENCE NEWS www.physics.ox.ac.uk/research

Life after discovery Planck satellite maps the Continued from page 3... early universe The ESA Planck satellite has made the most detailed map ever of the cosmic microwave background (CMB), giving a new, higher resolution picture of how the Universe looked 380,000 years after the Big Bang.

Universe are 5% in normal matter, Joanna Dunkley 27% in Dark Matter, and 68% in The temperature Dark Energy, now measured to fluctuations in the much higher precision. map (see image on page 6) trace ORDINARY

© GEMMA WOODEN / COURTESY DAVID HALL DAVID COURTESY / WOODEN GEMMA © the seeds of cosmic structure. MATTER DARK 4.9% The team includes scientists from MATTER Oxford Physics, and reports results 26.8% Above: Oxford physicist Chris Hays (left) and students David Hall giving a more accurate recipe for (right) and Gemma Wooden (not shown) contributed to the data the composition of the Universe, analysis for the published ATLAS observation of a new boson. and provides new evidence DARK ENERGY The above picture is from a March 2012 workshop on improving that supports the inflationary 68.3% the search for the Higgs boson in its decays to a pair of W bosons. paradigm for the early Universe. Oxford physicists are also attempting to make the first observation of Higgs boson decays to tau fermions. The Oxford team, led by PLANCK / ESA © Dr Jo Dunkley with post-docs Dr Erminia Calabrese and By accurately measuring the scale In addition to showing that The discovery of an apparent Dr Charmaine Armitage-Caplan, dependence and Gaussianity of the Higgs boson’s decays to Higgs boson has opened a new were involved in extracting the fluctuations in the CMB, the other particles are related to and exciting path for research, cosmological parameters from analysis also adds new support the particles’ masses, other with many possibilities for the Planck data. Working with for inflation, a brief phase of tests are needed to show that breakthroughs in the precise other UK and international exponential expansion in the first -30 these masses are due to the measurements of the boson’s collaborators, they used data 10 seconds. But the data have Higgs mechanism. Crucially, the properties. But equally (if not measured at multiple frequencies also revealed some unexpected Higgs boson must be shown to more) exciting are the ongoing from Planck, combined with other features, such as a lack of power in be a spin-0 particle with self- paths of research addressing experiments such as the Atacama the fluctuations in the CMB over couplings determined by its own other open issues in particle Cosmology Telescope, to remove the largest scales on the sky; these mass and the masses of the W physics. To name but a few such contaminating light from our own are tantalising as they are not and Z bosons. The measurement areas of research: searches for Galaxy and from distant galaxies. yet understood in our standard of self-couplings is one of the the source of dark matter, whose cosmological model. major challenges in the field. properties are consistent with The new best estimates for the In the Standard Model it is this particles that could be produced relative energy densities of the self-coupling that generates by the LHC; investigations into symmetry breaking and results the possibility of small spatial in a non-zero value of the Higgs dimensions at a size that could field filling all of space, including be probed at the LHC; and an even the vacuum. explanation for the exceptionally small neutrino masses, which However, measuring this suggest the existence of new critical parameter appears to be high-mass neutrino partners. In extremely difficult at either the all there are many opportunities LHC or a new electron-positron for surprises in the near future machine, with current estimates – perhaps the most exciting predicting uncertainties on this prospect of all! coupling of around 50%. In the very long term, perhaps a new form of collider such as a muon collider will be needed to make this important measurement to Left: Artist’s high precision. impression of ESA’s Planck spacecraft. © ESA / PLANCK / ESA ©

4 | Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 SCIENCE NEWS www.physics.ox.ac.uk/research Stargazing Andrew Gosling Oxford... Our second Stargazing event saw 1,200 people glimpsing the wonders of the night sky © NASA / JPL-CALTECH / CFA CFA / JPL-CALTECH / NASA ©

January 12th 2013 was the date bitterly cold weather and clouds high praise being given in our mini Stargazing events open to of our second Stargazing Oxford could have put a real dent in feedback from those attending. the public in evenings during event and marked the culmination attendance, but the tireless work This year also saw the scope the winter months, three Schools of a year that has transformed the and enthusiasm of staff spending of our activities expand as the evenings every second month, outreach activities of the Oxford a large fraction of their day out Particle Physics, Atmospheric and members of the Department Astrophysics Department. For in the cold meant that no-one Physics and Earth Sciences are making regular visits to the second year running almost turned away this year because the Departments got involved with schools and other organisations 1,200 members of the public, queue was too long. events and displays, to give talks, run aged between 3 and 83, took time and we were CHECK OUT OUR activities and Our activities saw the return of out of their days to wander the very happy to VIDEOS AND PODCASTS! generally bring old favourites including rooftop corridors and rooms of the Denys welcome the as much of the observing with Astronomical Find out more about our night sky, Wilkinson Building and get a History of passion and Societies (once the clouds from new planets to far-off galaxies! glimpse into the activities and day Science enthusiasm finally cleared), the inflatable Watch or listen to short talks for the general to day lives of Astrophysicists. Museum public from Oxford’s leading astronomy that we all planetarium (hosted by our own and researchers: share for After the unprecedented success PhD students this year), the Science our subject of last year’s event, and the Science Cafe, Astrocrafts and the HTTP://PODCASTS.OX.AC.UK/SERIES/ Oxford to to the problems that it incurred, we Flash Talks. We’d also devised STARGAZING the party. public. were determined to make this many new attractions for the or year bigger and better. With the visitors. Out was Universe-ity It wasn’t just HTTPS://ITUNES.APPLE.COM/GB/ Finally, there increased capacity of activities Challenge, and in came Just an the inclusion ITUNES-U/STARGAZING/ are a few things spread across four floors of the Arc-Minute (based loosely on the of the History ID597390004 you may wish building, we hoped to avoid Radio 4 panel quiz show), live of Science Museum to keep an eye on the hour-long queues of people uplinks to a telescope control and Science Oxford that in the coming year. During waiting to enter that were the room, remote observing not meant we were able to reach Stargazing Oxford, we ran a poll result of last year’s popularity, and only with the Phillip Wetton new audiences this year; Oxford asking the public what project even if the queues did develop, Telescope (PWT) but with a Astrophysics was also invited to they would like to see carried displays and activities were second telescope based in the one of the major tie-in events out on the PWT; the stand out spread right out into the queue Canary Islands, a hands-on activity for the BBCs Stargazing Live: winner was to track the comet this year so that no-one would be room, Solar System Jackanory and Stargazing Newbury at the ISON as it approached the sun, left waiting with nothing to keep a debate on whether there may Racecourse run by BBC South. and in the last couple of weeks them occupied and entertained. be life in the Galaxy. It all seemed Here we were part of an event Fraser Clarke managed to It was a good thing too, as the to be very well received, with that had over 2,500 guests, and capture our first image:www. I can attest that talks given by physics.ox.ac.uk/blog/astro- Oxford Astrophysicists can gather blog/2013/02/06/stargazing- a bigger crowd than a live Q&A oxford-2013-project-comet-ison with a NASA Astronaut trainer (before the BBC ran its own article: – who would have thought? We www.bbc.co.uk/news/science- even discovered just how much environment-21352427). We’ll be the public love to see a comet keeping progress updates of the made right there in front of them tracking on the Astrophysics Blog: as we regularly had to manage www.physics.ox.ac.uk/blog/ the crowds as they gathered astro-blog and you can find out around to see. all about what we’ll be doing both there and on our facebook page: We also now have a very healthy https://www.facebook.com/ calendar of events running OxfordAstrophysics. throughout the year, two or three © VAL CROWDER / DEPT OF PHYSICS 2013 PHYSICS OF DEPT / CROWDER VAL ©

Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 | 5

WWW.HAWKINSBROWN.COM © HAWKINS/BROWN HAWKINS/BROWN © Architect’s impression of the new Physics building, viewed from University Parks.

Notes from the Head of Physics Closer to home I wrote last year about the planned John Wheater new physics building, which will accommodate This has been an exciting year for the Department’s theorists and support small Physics. Just as the last Newsletter scale laboratory science with very demanding went to print the discovery of a new environmental requirements. For example, vibration particle, probably the Higgs boson, levels are very important for nanoscale physics; if was announced at CERN. This is the culmination of an object is shaking with an amplitude ten times its many years effort, a significant amount of which has own size then high quality imaging is impossible. been in Oxford as you can read in Chris Llewellyn Similarly, temperature control is vital; expansion and Smith’s article. As more data is analysed it becomes contraction caused by temperature fluctuations can clearer that this really is the Higgs boson whose easily wreck the alignment of experiments. The new existence was predicted in the 1960s. It’s not only building is crucial for the Department’s scientific the theorists who have a long wait -- from being a future and we are working hard to raise the funding founder member of the ATLAS experiment, through required to build it. The total of about £35m will building the crucial central tracker of the detector, come from a number of different sources; among to seeing the scientific pay-back has taken 20 years. these is philanthropic giving from individuals and we are very grateful to alumni who have so far pledged about £2.2m towards the project. Turning to the Department’s teaching, there has been a major development in the past year. The University has now approved a new Mathematical Physics degree, the MMathPhys, which is a joint enterprise by the Physics and Mathematics Departments. This will enable undergraduates in Physics or Mathematics to elect to do a quite distinct Mathematical Physics course for their fourth year. Exactly the same course will also be available as a standard Masters degree for students coming from other universities. This is a very exciting prospect as Oxford has lacked such a course for

© ESA / PLANCK / ESA © many years and we look forward to welcoming the first students in Michaelmas Term 2015. Above: This map shows the March saw the first scientific papers from another Finally, the past twelve months have seen the fluctuations around the international project, ESA’s Planck satellite, which realisation of our plans to run a number of events mean temperature, about has given the power spectrum of the cosmic specifically for Physics alumni. I have greatly enjoyed 2.73 Kelvin, of the cosmic microwave background – a remnant of the Big meeting many of you, sharing reminiscences of how microwave background. Bang – to much higher resolution than hitherto. things were, and learning about the extraordinary The fluctuations are about Oxford played a crucial role in separating the range of things that our alumni have accomplished. 1 part in 100,000; red is cosmic microwave background (pictured above) The next major event will be at the University’s slightly warmer and blue from the much stronger emissions from the Milky Alumni Weekend on 20th to 22nd September in slightly colder than the Way and deducing the parameters of the standard Oxford. I look forward to seeing you there. mean. cosmological model. There is no second chance to fix a space observatory at the second Lagrangian point and Planck, which was launched in 2009, worked perfectly until its on-board supply of helium-3 was exhausted as expected in 2012.

6 | Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 Help the Department reach its potential

There are many ways in which you can contribute to the Department: volunteering time; sharing ideas and contacts; offering placements for current students; making donations – all of which are much appreciated. If you would like to discuss how you can help, please contact Val Crowder, our Alumni Officer, [email protected] .

Fundraising for the new building is well under way; below are examples of the literature available to support the fundraising campaign.

Physics at Oxford Facts and Figures From quantum to cosmos: Science at the cutting edge Oxford Physics in brief

The Physics Department at the University of Oxford is one of the These are exciting times for Physics at Oxford. Drawing on the wide- largest physics departments in the world, employing about 475 people ranging expertise and remarkable versatility of a large world-leading and having an annual turnover of about £32m. department, we are pursuing the most important and challenging We have 104 permanent academic staff and 24 long-term research fellows. physics problems of the age through a powerful combination of There are 185 post-doctoral researchers and 162 technical and support staff. experimental, observational and theoretical investigation. Below is just a sample of the fascinating physics being done today at Oxford. Oxford has played a major role in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) since its inception. Crucial parts of its ATLAS and LHCb detectors were developed and built in Oxford, and many theoretical developments underpinning the LHC physics programme were pioneered here. These efforts are now bearing fruit in a number of important ways. The elusive Higgs boson, the particle central to the structure of matter as predicted by the ‘standard model’, has been discovered at the LHC. Studies of the asymmetry between particles and their anti-particles are giving us a window into the possibility that there may be physics beyond ‘the standard model’, holding out the promise of remarkable discoveries and new understandings in the years to come. Oxford physicists will be at the forefront of these exciting developments. The Physics Department student body comprises 721 undergraduate and 303 graduate students working for degrees. Every year, an average of 10 members of the department win national or international prizes for their research. Recent examples include: the Boltzmann Medal, awarded every three years by the International Union for Pure and Applied Physics, was given to Professor John Cardy in 2010; Professor Joe Silk won the 2011 Balzan Prize; in 2011, the American Physical Society gave its Joseph F. Keithley Award for Advances in Measurement Science to Professor Ian Walmsley, and its John Dawson Award for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research to Professor Simon Hooker.

Of the 3,500 papers that we published in scientific journals 2007–2011, some 50 have already been cited in more than 100 other articles. And in 2011 alone, we filed 10 patent applications.

The Physics Building Physics. Why Physics? The dawning of a new era, in new surroundings The science of everything. Supporting the science of everything

Physics is the science of – everything. It is the ancient, endless quest to In order to fulfil their potential, Oxford’s world-class physicists need facilities understand the fundamental processes of reality itself, at every level from the that match their ability and reputation. Precision experiments on the atomic subatomic to the macrocosmic – and to apply this ever-deepening knowledge scale, performed in university laboratories, will lead to momentous advances to the betterment of our world. while crucial new ideas will be generated by spontaneous meetings of minds. The new Physics Building represents the first phase of the New Clarendon The depth and reach of physics support developments in every field of Laboratory project and has been carefully designed to nurture delicate scientific endeavour: medical breakthroughs, technological innovation, experimentation and robust theoretical discussion within a single centre of startling advancements in manufacturing, materials, communications, excellence... but it has yet to be built. energy, environmental protection and much more. It informs and refines our understanding of existence, and our place within it, constantly opening up new vistas of possibility for the human community and for individual lives. However, even the most enlightened governments can struggle to easily justify financial investment in physicists’ research – many of the applications of physicists’ research to the development of technologies were unforeseen as their research commenced – yet blue-sky thinking and unconstrained collaboration amongst scientists has proven invaluable to mankind.

A glimpse of the future of Physics

Physics stands at the threshold of a new golden age. Oxford’s physicists are at the heart of ground-breaking research and exciting new developments. Using advanced experimental techniques and sophisticated theoretical methods, we hunt for the Higgs-Boson at the Large Hadron Collider; observe and model the earth’s climate; probe the earliest epochs of the universe; study the plasmas created using powerful lasers; search for room temperature superconductors; create quantum phenomena only observable close to absolute zero; and manipulate the molecules basic to life. Now is the time to visit the department and see some of the amazing work that is being done. You’ll also have the opportunity to see plans for the New Clarendon Laboratory, a new building that will be the home of theoretical physics and high-tech experiment, helping Oxford Physics to work at the cutting edge of 21st century science. Architect’s Please get in touch to arrange your visit to the Physics Department. impression of the new Physics building

You can download the above documents here: https://www.physics.ox.ac.uk/alumni/connect/physics-leaflets

Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 | 7 DEPARTMENT NEWS & EVENTS

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY ALUMNI WEEKEND OPEN DAY NEW ALUMNI WEBSITE! 20–22 September 2013 The Physics website Physics will open its doors for the second year, for a series of free (www.physics.ox.ac.uk) now events aimed at our alumni and their families. There will be a has an Alumni section to th Telescope Night on Friday 20 , including posters and a chance to keep you up to date with our talk to the Astrophysics team over a glass of wine and nibbles; and activities, including a Calendar st a full open day on Saturday 21 . From 1pm to 7pm, there will be of Events and ways to connect lectures, a tour of the Department, open café, posters, hands on and collaborate. and other things to keep you up to date with all that is going on at Physics, ending with the Head of Physics’ lecture at 5pm followed by Under the ‘More’ tab, you a drinks reception. We look forward to seeing you there! will find‘ Blogs’, including the Alumni Blog. We are always To book, www.alumniweekend.ox.ac.uk , or contact Val if you are looking for collaborations, only interested in coming to the Physics events. photos and anecdotes from our alumni. Please get in touch! SYDNEY NETWORK EVENT If you would like to promote events which may be of interest 22 September 2013 to alumni, please send the details to Val Crowder, email Professor Roger Davies, and Dr Chris Lintott will host a drinks [email protected]. reception for Australian alumni.

CERN DINNER Date tbc, first week in October 2013 Summer Garden Party Professor Wade Allison will be visiting CERN, giving a lecture On Saturday 22nd June 2013 we held our first Garden Party for and taking part in a dinner organised by the Geneva Oxford & alumni in the University Parks. Almost 200 people attended, and Cambridge Society. If you’d like to attend, please get in touch. you can hear some of the interviews through our Alumni Vimeo Channel https://vimeo.com/channels/549969. INDUSTRY DAY 23 October 2013 If you would like to participate in the industry day, please contact [email protected]. For more information on the work we do with the sector, visit www.physics.ox.ac.uk/enterprise.

ASIA REUNION WEEKEND 21-23 March 2014, Hong Kong Next spring will see Oxford going to Hong Kong for the first ever Oxford Asia Weekend. Join us for three days of festivities, from drinks receptions and dinners to special exhibitions and inspirational academic sessions https://www.alumni.ox.ac.uk/page.aspx?pid=727.

NORTH AMERICA REUNION 12 April 2014, New York City The Hintze Lectures A biennial event that keeps expanding The Hintze Lectures highlight contemporary https://www.alumni.ox.ac.uk/page.aspx?pid=727. developments in Astrophysics and Cosmology. A generous donation by The OTHER UK EVENTS Hintze Family Charitable Foundation enables We are finalising details of other events around the UK. if you’d like world leading researchers to visit Oxford and to be notified of these, please register atwww.physics.ox.ac.uk/ deliver a lecture as part of this series. alumni. www.physics.ox.ac.uk/about-us/outreach/ Just as a side note, from 17–19 September, Rhodes House will the-hintze-lectures be celebrating its 110th anniversary, and we are planning a few special things for all Rhodes Physicists. Please let us know if you are planning to attend. Arthur Cooke Prize Fund If you have any suggestions, or would like to host an Many thanks to Barrie Ricketson, whose £2,000 gift will go towards alumni event please get in touch with Val Crowder, awarding a prize each year for the best overall performance by a [email protected]. Condensed Matter Physics graduate student in their first year.

8 | Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 DEPARTMENT NEWS & EVENTS

DID YOU KNOW? The Steve Rawlings Memorial Fund THE 14/10 CLUB AT THE ALUMNI GET A 20% MEMBERSHIP DISCOUNT 11th January this year marked ROYAL INSTITUTION TO THE RI, AND/OR the first anniversary of Steve In February, Dr John Wheater and Dr Jo THE 14/10 CLUB Rawlings’ death. It has been Dunkley were invited to take part in REGISTER ONLINE USING CODE a difficult 12 months – Steve a special lecture hosted by the 14/10 OX1410 OR CALL was a much loved colleague Club*, at the Royal Institution, London. ELISABETH KECK ON and is greatly missed as both Talking to an audience of scientists who +44 (0)20 7409 2992 a person and a phenomenal are currently working in the financial markets, astrophysicist. at the famous Lecture Theatre of the RI, the topic There has been significant was ‘Gravity from Stochastics to Cosmology’ and it proved a very interest in finding a way interesting night, followed by drinks and lots of great discussions. to memorialise Steve and I In May, Prof Brian Foster gave a talk entitled ‘Beyond the Large am happy to tell you that, Hadron Collider – the next big machine’ , where he explained the with the full backing of Steve’s wife, Linda, we have set up the International Linear Collider project. Steve Rawlings Memorial Fund in his honour. The aim of the Fund is to raise money for graduate student travel in Astrophysics at the * The 14-10 club meets on a monthly basis to hear from top experts in University of Oxford. This is something we believe Steve would science, maths and finance in a social and collegiate atmosphere in have been very supportive of and we hope that you may wish to the heart of Mayfair. The club is exclusively for finance professionals contribute. who have a background in science and maths and want to keep their The easiest way to help is through the special online giving interests alive. page we have set up at http://www.giving.ox.ac.uk/academic_ departments/mpls/rawlings_memorial.html Our thoughts at this time are very much with Steve’s wife and European Reunion, Madrid family and we hope that this initiative will commemorate Steve 26–28 April 2013 appropriately. More than 70 physicists and friends met us at the Real Observatorio Roger Davies de Madrid, in Spain, for a guided tour, drinks and a lecture by Philip Wetton Professor of Astrophysics Dr John Wheater, Head of Physics, and Prof. Sir Chris Llewellyn Smith (who features on the first page of this newsletter). This event HOW YOU CAN HELP was part of the overall celebrations during the weekend in Madrid, organised by the central Alumni Office. For information on other ways to donate, please follow this link: The next European Reunion will take place in Vienna in 2015. www.campaign.ox.ac.uk/contribute/ways_to_give/index.html.

If you have any queries, please contact William Thomas in the University Development Office:[email protected] , Tel. +44 (0) 1865 611547.

For more information on ways to contribute, visit our Alumni pages: www.physics.ox.ac.uk/alumni.

Physics joins social networks! BIG Help us build a strong community @ Oxford BANG! Physics, find us and exchange ideas via:

LinkedIn: Oxford Above: The replica Herschel Telescope at the Real Observatorio de Vimeo: Oxford Physics Physics Madrid (where Physics hosted a tour, drinks reception and lectures). The original telescope, built by Herschel for the Observatorio, was destroyed in 1808 during the Napoleonic occupation.

Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 | 9 PEOPLE

Alumni stories In the last newsletter we invited alumni to contact us and tell their stories. Three of you have been kind enough to send us a contribution, revealing three diverse careers. We hope you enjoy reading these. Please keep these contributions coming! Lance Miller (Editor)

Ron Cox, Trinity College, 1944–51 for the Antarctic via the Falkland Islands, to supervisors all of whom had not seen Service (and y much-valued replace one of its navigating officers, who life and were sometimes younger than myself. possibly undeserved) connection was in hospital with appendicitis. Any idea with the University started Arrangements at the Physics (Clarendon) of presenting myself in College to refresh during the 1939–45 War. I was one of the laboratories during the War had been of M my membership was totally frustrated as, selected sixth-formers, who, on leaving typically good quality, although we were on the day of interviews, I was in latitude school, were offered a six-month university 68 degrees south and the ship was iced in short course before they entered the Forces. at the British Base in Margarite Bay. When The reasoning behind this arrangement still Half-way through that year the Second eventually I returned to the UK the College remains obscure: for applicants it offered an Sea Lord again required my services for was sufficiently fascinated with my exploits opportunity to avoid conscription (with its the Korean War and I found myself in (nobody there, at that time, had heard of one-in-ten chance of compulsory service in the Eastern Pacific when I should have the Falkland Islands) that I was accepted the coal mines); for the universities, it gave the been sitting Finals.’ for entry for the Michaelmas Term in 1948 opportunity to maintain academic facilities without any further assessment. At Trinity I as lectures continued ‘as usual’ although was suprised to find I was reading Physics (I undergraduates (or ‘cadets’ as they were more forbidden entry to parts of the building where had expected Chemistry, my pet subject) and commonly named) had to undergo one-and- nuclear research was proceeding as part of found myself the only undergraduate with this a-half days of Forces training in uniform whilst the Manhattan Project. But after the War the discipline. Consequently I was ‘farmed out’ to attending normal Hon.Mod. Lectures. The arrrangements there appeared more mixed. I outside tutors who were undersupplied with course ended with examinations and we were soon abandoned the Kinetic Theory lectures undergraduates. The arrangement was less encouraged to succeed with the promise of of Lord Cherwell but rejoiced in those of some than satisfactory as I had scant respect for my consideration of a full undergraduate place when we returned to civilian life after the end of the War. The distribution of those volunteering for this arrangement was on a totally random basis between all the UK Universities, and, within them, to their colleges. I was fortunate (one of the strokes of a lifetime) to be SENT to Oxford and allocated to Trinity. (Paradoxically, my sole attempt at ‘proper’ university entrance was to Trinity, Cambridge, where I believe I gained a ‘gamma’ in all three main papers, although I was offered a place to read Divinity on the strength of a good performance in the General Paper. After discharge (temporary: see below) from the Navy I had the better part of a year before my possible return to Trinity could occur (‘possible’ as it was unclear whether I would have to sit a ‘re-entrance’ examination). But on the day when I left the Navy I had a sudden call to join a ship that was heading Freshers 1944 – Ron Cox is standing in the second row, second from left to right.

10 | Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 PEOPLE

of the emigré (Austrian) lecturers whom I found more understandable and inspired. Experimental work (none done during the wartime Short Course) was of an elementary nature and seemed more fitting to a Sixth- Form student. Possibly having the advantages (disadvantage?) of a good Grammar School upbringing, little interest accompanied the performance of elementary lab-work with which I was already quite familiar. Supervision by recently qualified young graduates with little experience of the wider world added greyness to what could have been an exciting experience. However, on the theory side, the recommendations for books for the theory courses were highly suitable and provided compensation for some lecturers and tutors who were sub-standard. Being left largely on one’s own to study deeply where interested (and shallowly where diffident), I drifted happily towards my third year with some confidence. However, half-way through that year the Second Sea Lord again required my services for the Korean War and I found myself in the Eastern Pacific when I should have been sitting Finals. This disastrous intervention (which I could not avoid as the Navy was paying for all my university and college fees) potentially wrecked my intended future as subsequently I was unwilling (as a twenty-five year old) to return and mingle with pupils many years my junior. However, the Lord Cherwell (now of blessed memory) discovered an unusual University regulation that permitted the award of a degree to those of ‘unusual circumstances’. Consequently, in July 1951, I presented myself at the Sheldonian and graduated with a BA, in which status I remained for 45 minutes before becoming an MA (so prodigal then, as now, was the University with its second degrees). These last events coincided with marriage, and, after a short period at the Atomic Research Establishment at Harwell, I decided that I had already had a lifetime’s fill of excitement and travel and entered the teaching profession, starting at Bradford Grammar School, one of the former Direct Grant establishments where the entry embraced those of all social classes with the necessary ability. A later move to a small public school, where I was in charge of Physics Top: WW2 remembrance gates at Trinity College. and its associated subjects, completed a Centre and bottom: Life at Trinity in the 1950s. satisfactory lifetime career of overall happiness and (modest) success.

With many thanks to Clare Hopkins, archivist at Trinity College. Images: With gratitude to the President and Fellows of Trinity College, Oxford.

Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 | 11 PEOPLE

John Bevan, Jesus College, 1954

Just two Oxford snapshots: n the early 1950s I was Fifty years ago, even Physics a pupil in a small rural grammar essays were graded in Greek: school. There was no qualified and I still fondly remember physicist on the staff – I was taught for my A I my one and only α. I had levels by an economist! But on 29 March 1954 spent the long vac working the Principal of Jesus College wrote to me to as a trainee health physicist offer me ‘a place here as a Commoner to read John Bevan (centre), Jesus College 1957 at Chapelcross (we were Physics’. He went on to say that my ‘work in commissioning reactor some of the Science papers was described number 2), and our October as weak’, and asked me to write to Dr Claude collections included a advice. He wrote at length, and offered us Hurst about it. So I received my first letter from question on the measurement of low (nuclear) sage counsel, but our students were so Claude that April – two closely hand-written radiation levels. Claude simply wrote below different in kind from his that we found we pages of it critically analysing my entrance my answer ‘You clearly know more about this had to develop our own pedagogy (without examination mistakes. It was literally years than I do’. Greek!). Most of our students were in (or before I realised that I couldn’t have been very briefly out of) industry, so that ‘tutorial’ absolutely awful! And in my last year, the examiners were still questions were likely to be about the extent to de-bugging the methodology for exempting which baked beans in tomato sauce, moving all reasonably serious students from the ...our October collections included a through stainless steel canning machinery, need to undergo a practical examination could usefully be treated as a ‘classical’ non- question on the measurement of low during Finals. In Hilary term, Jim (my practical Newtonian fluid (we didn’t do too well on (nuclear) radiation levels. Claude simply partner) and I were effectively ‘signed off’ that one). And post-graduate projects were wrote below my answer ‘You clearly when Nicholas Kurti (of low temperature about such challenges as how best to measure physics fame) caught us in the labs. For know more about this than I do’. accurately the radiation dose from relatively some reason he needed test data on the low energy X-rays inside a cancerous womb variation of the specific heat of a particular (we got that one right – and a short paper out lead sample over the temperature range from of it – working with the Royal Marsden). ~273K down to the oxygen boiling point at And so, in 1957, I entered the Clarendon for ~90K. He promptly signed off our last ‘proper’ In due course, perhaps largely because I never the first time – a delay caused by National undergraduate experiment (the writing up of could keep silent when there was obviously Service, which meant that most of us who which was incomplete), and put us to work. a better way of doing things, I moved into matriculated that year were not at all the But we never did find out what it was for! administration – and became over time a schoolboys we had once been. Indeed, I Director of Education, and then a chief officer shared digs with a mathematician who had As a graduate, I returned to the then UKAEA in two quangos. I ended my working career earned his commission while commanding as a health physicist. I was based at Windscale as a specialist ombudsman, by which time I troops who were burying the Egyptians that (now Sellafield), but spent time studying had taken to describing myself as a lapsed we had killed in the ill-fated Suez ‘adventure’. at the Harwell Reactor School, and while physicist. But perhaps not quite. Only this year there enjoyed my first ever dinner on High an account of the aftermath of the Fukushima Table as Claude’s guest. Then, following the accident in physicsworld led me to write to subsequent re-evaluation of the ‘Windscale its NPL author challenging the accuracy of Below: Prof. Kurti signed off John’s notebook. Fire’ of 1957, for which I had done some his simplification of the health physics (or work on the ‘radioactive milk’ data, radiobiology) involved. He was kind enough I moved to what was then the to acknowledge that I was essentially correct. Borough Polytechnic. I set up a programme of courses on aspects And the recent successful landing of the of radiation protection; undertook Curiosity on Mars reminded me that as long postgraduate work in Professor ago as 1969, in a contribution to a short series Jo Rotblat’s department at St of books on space research and technology, Bartholomew’s Medical College; and I had a go at summarising the health physics became part of the higher education hazards of getting men (a) to and from the transition of the old polytechnics Moon; and (b) to Mars and back. My published to junior members of the collegium estimates of the radiation doses involved in (a) of universities. Which led to yet survived the experimental test in July of that another letter from Claude. year and subsequently, but my figures (‘first approximations’) for (b) may have to wait for I had persuaded my colleagues others to validate. that we should include a structured tutorial system in our undergraduate Once a physicist, … and post-graduate courses in And I owe Claude (and the Clarendon) a lot.

PHOTO ABOVE RIGHT: COURTESY JESUS COLLEGE ARCHIVES / CHRIS JEENS JEENS CHRIS / ARCHIVES COLLEGE JESUS COURTESY RIGHT: ABOVE PHOTO BEVAN COLLECTION JOHN OF PRIVATE RIGHT: PHOTO JAMES. ALI AND Physics – and I sought Claude’s

12 | Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 PEOPLE

Michael Truss, Balliol (1995)

A move to Durham University came next, y career path has not this time to a Teaching Fellowship. This was been a straightforward one, but a fairly unique and fortunate position to it is a good example of how a be in: teaching responsibility but also an career (much of it dominated by physics) can M opportunity to keep research going as part gradually and naturally evolve. of the High Energy Astrophysics Group. Some

Beginning a physics degree at Oxford was of the teaching aspects took me out of my PHOTO COURTESY MICHAELTRUSS 2012 / daunting; I fretted for weeks that I might find comfort zone and I soon found myself with Michael Truss myself out of my depth, both socially and responsibilities for first year undergraduates academically. Happily, that never came to in – horror of horrors – a laboratory. I quickly pass and it was incredibly satisfying to feel found that I absolutely loved it, though. a tangible sense of progress throughout my course. Astrophysics became a real interest, thanks initially to Katherine Blundell’s tutorials and first year lecture course on observational cosmology. It soon became clear that ...I began to realise that my real continuing with physics or astronomy was a possibility and after an MPhys project on X-ray binary stars on the top floor, I found passion was biased more towards myself signing up for a PhD in the Theoretical Astrophysics group at the University of education than research... Leicester. Here I was involved in numerical modelling At the time (and it may still be true today), did during my four years at Oxford has proved of accretion discs in close binary stars. Both a Teaching Fellowship was a rare thing in a important at some point in my later life. my fourth year major options from Oxford UK physics department and soon a crunch Whether it was working through an optics were absolutely key to this: Astrophysics decision needed to be made: remain in practical (ensuring that all possible sources and Atmospheres and Oceans, which academe and return focus to research of experimental error were considered!), provided me with a crucial grounding in fluid (possibly abroad), or make a break and teach speaking in the JCR about the Balliol room dynamics. Several research papers and a full time in a school. I was fortunate to have ballot or even catching a word with the pretty PPARC Postdoctoral teaching experience and chose not to study Chemistry student downstairs (we were later Fellowship at St for a PGCE. However, I would certainly urge married in the college chapel), everything Andrews followed, most people facing a similar decision after mattered. The best advice is to relish every I soon found including a brief an academic career to consider a PGCE very minute. carefully. After applications to independent myself with but extremely Michael is currently Head of Mathematics schools, I was pleased to find that my responsibilities for first happy time and Head of Academic Enrichment at Bedales with my experience was valued very highly. After year undergraduates in School. young family considering job offers from a few well-known – horror of horrors – a as a visitor at boarding schools, I settled on Bedales, where laboratory... the Centre for I was captivated by its atmosphere and ethos. Astrophysics and It now gives me huge satisfaction to see Supercomputing at students I have taught leave to study similar Swinburne in subjects to mine at university – especially at Melbourne. Though it was wonderful to be in Oxford. a career where I was paid to do Astrophysics, It really took me until my early thirties to I began to realise that my real passion was wend my way to something that resembles biased more towards education than research. my current job. I would advise anyone who is Throughout my PhD I had done lots of worried about impending career decisions to teaching and thoroughly enjoyed it, however bear this in mind: your first job will probably opportunities to teach during a research not be your last. In writing this piece I also fellowship can be rather thin on the ground. realised something: just about everything I

We are grateful to those of you who have already sent in stories of your experiences and look forward to receiving many more. ARCHIVES As we work on the Department’s archive material, which we plan to make more accessible online, we should be very pleased to hear from anyone with experience of working with archives who would like to help us in this venture.

Department of Physics Newsletter | Summer 2013 | 13 PEOPLE