Explorations of the Universe with the BABAR and LSST Experiments

通过 BABAR 和 LSST 实验探索宇宙

• 批准号: 0969487
• 负责人: Patricia Burchat
• 金额: $ 107.8万
• 依托单位: Stanford University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2010-09-01 至 2014-10-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0969487&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Explorations; Universe; BABAR; LSST; Experiments

This award enables the Stanford University group led by Principle Investigator Patricia Burchat to maximize the long-term benefit of its investment in the BABAR experiment at SLAC and contribute to a new effort in observational cosmology through the proposed Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST). The intellectual merit of the project follows from searching for ways to improve the Standard Model (SM) of particle physics. The SM does not address the "hierarchy" problem and its particle content does not contain a candidate for the dark matter in the Universe. The highly sensitive searches and precision studies conducted with bottom, charm and tau decays at the B Factories impose severe constraints on any model that is introduced to address the deficiencies of the SM. The analyses that will be conducted by the Stanford group on the final BABAR data sample will leave a legacy of results that will help define the theories that are developed to describe the universe. The Stanford group will complete ongoing searches for new physics in rare or forbidden charm and B decays, conduct the final time-dependent Dalitz-plot analysis of B - rho-pi to extract the CKM angle alpha, begin studies to elucidate the nature of recently observed but perplexing charmonium-like states, and continue to play a significant role in organizing the production of the simulated data samples needed to carry out all physics analyses in BABAR. The initiation of a program based on the LSST will enable the group to study gravitational lensing as a cosmological probe which is sensitive to all matter in the universe - baryonic and dark matter. The Stanford group has been focusing on pre-LSST astronomical data sets (in particular, images of deep galaxy clusters from the 8-meter Subaru telescope) to gain technical experience in "pipeline" development needed for analysis of gravitational lensing, especially photometry and the measurement of galaxy shapes, and studies related to systematic uncertainties that will potentially limit the sensitivity of LSST for cosmology. Broader impacts include participation in an inter-experiment study of issues related to data preservation and long-term analysis in high energy physics, particularly directed to the BaBar data set. As part of this effort, the Stanford group is focusing on how long-term data storage and access can be optimized for outreach and education to benefit the general public, high school students and teachers, students in college-level particle physics courses, and the training of future graduate students in particle physics. Prototype formats and tutorials are being designed and developed, and will be tested in a particle physics course taught by the PI. In addition, activities aimed at increasing and diversifying the cohort of students who receive a physics education will continue.

该奖项使由首席研究员Patricia Burchat领导的斯坦福大学小组能够最大限度地提高其在SLAC的BABAR实验中投资的长期利益，并通过拟议的大型综合巡天望远镜（LSST）为观测宇宙学做出新的努力。该项目的智力价值来自于寻找改进粒子物理学标准模型（SM）的方法。SM没有解决“层次”问题，它的粒子内容不包含宇宙中暗物质的候选者。在B工厂对底、粲和τ衰变进行的高灵敏度搜索和精确度研究，对任何为解决SM缺陷而引入的模型施加了严格的限制。斯坦福大学小组将对最终的BABAR数据样本进行分析，这些分析将留下一系列结果，有助于定义为描述宇宙而开发的理论。斯坦福大学团队将完成正在进行的在罕见或禁止的魅力和B衰变中寻找新物理的研究，对B - rho-pi进行最终的时间依赖性达利茨图分析，以提取CKM角α，开始研究，以阐明最近观察到的但令人困惑的类charmonium状态的性质，并继续发挥重要作用，组织生产所需的模拟数据样本，进行所有的物理分析巴巴尔。启动一个基于LSST的计划将使该小组能够研究引力透镜作为宇宙学探测器，它对宇宙中的所有物质-重子和暗物质-都很敏感。斯坦福大学研究组一直侧重于LSST前的天文数据集（特别是8米斯巴鲁望远镜拍摄的深星系团图像），以获得分析引力透镜所需的“管道”开发技术经验，特别是光度测定和星系形状测量，以及与可能限制LSST对宇宙学敏感性的系统不确定性有关的研究。更广泛的影响包括参与一项实验间研究，研究与高能物理学数据保存和长期分析有关的问题，特别是针对BaBar数据集的问题。作为这一努力的一部分，斯坦福大学小组正专注于如何优化长期数据存储和访问，以使公众、高中学生和教师、大学粒子物理课程的学生以及未来粒子物理研究生的培训受益。原型格式和教程正在设计和开发中，并将在PI教授的粒子物理课程中进行测试。此外，将继续开展旨在增加接受物理教育的学生人数并使其多样化的活动。