Experimental Particle Physics with Electronic Detectors

宾夕法尼亚州立大学粒子物理小组的重点有三个方面：在DESY的HERA完成ZEUS实验和分析活动；欧洲核子研究中心大型强子对撞机TOTEM实验的开发工作；并参与了与欧洲核子研究中心ALICE实验合作的宇宙射线介子研究。DESY的ZEUS实验是在318 GeV质心能量下研究电子/正电子-质子深度非弹性散射（DIS），以研究物质的组成结构。它的主要目标是研究DIS在最高交换光子的虚拟性，探测电子和夸克的子结构到10-18厘米的距离，并在0.1-1 TeV的质量范围内寻找新的激发轻子和夸克家族，这表明了超越标准模型的物理。在接下来的三年拨款期间，HERA将提供高亮度和轻子光束偏振。到2007年中期，HERA-II计划将停止运作，PSU小组将过渡到大型强子对撞机的TOTEM实验。对于TOTEM，该小组将进行读出和触发生成的研发。TOTEM将研究高能质子-质子碰撞中非常超前的粒子产生。第三个（宇宙射线）项目的目标是研究高多重μ子束，这可能意味着初级宇宙射线相互作用中的高能效应，这些效应不包括在当前模拟超高能量宇宙射线的蒙特卡罗程序中。该项目由宾夕法尼亚州立大学（Penn State University）和宾夕法尼亚太空资助联盟（Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium）协调，其更广泛的影响包括每年为教育工作者举办一系列夏季科学研讨会，目标是中学教师。

The focus of the Penn State University particle physics group is three fold: completion and analysis activities of the ZEUS experiment at HERA at DESY; developmental work for the TOTEM experiment at the LHC at CERN; and participation in a Cosmic Ray muon study in collaboration with the ALICE experiment at CERN. The ZEUS experiment at DESY is a study of electron/positron-proton deep inelastic scattering (DIS) at a center-of-mass energy of 318 GeV to investigate the constituent structure of matter. Its primary aims are to study DIS at the highest exchanged photon virtualities, to probe electron and quark substructure down to distances of 10-18 cm, and to search for new families of excited leptons and quarks, in the 0.1-1 TeV mass range, indicative of physics beyond the Standard Model. During this next three-year grant period, HERA will provide high luminosity and lepton beam polarization. By mid 2007, the HERA-II program will cease operations, and the PSU group will transition to the TOTEM experiment at the LHC. For TOTEM, the group will conduct R&D on readout and trigger generation. TOTEM will investigate very forward particle production in high-energy proton-proton collisions. The goal of third (cosmic ray) project is to study high multiplicity muon bundles which might signify high-energy effects in primary cosmic ray interactions that are not included in current Monte Carlo programs that are simulating ultra high-energy cosmic rays. Broader impacts of the program, coordinated through Penn State University and the Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium, include an annual series of summer Science Workshops for Educators, aimed at secondary school teachers.