Searches for Physics Beyond the Standard Model through the Running of the Strong Coupling Constant in the ATLAS Experiment at the LHC

该奖项将为路易斯安那理工大学在欧洲核子研究中心(CERN)的大型强子对撞机(LHC)上从事ATLAS实验的一个小组提供支持，CERN是一个位于瑞士日内瓦的粒子物理实验室。大型强子对撞机和大型粒子探测器ATLAS是利用美国国家科学基金会和世界各地其他机构的资金作为基础科学工具建造的。他们的主要目标之一是找到希格斯玻色子，这是历史上成功的“标准模型”(SM)中的最后一个粒子，它解释了宇宙中形成物质的已知粒子的存在和相互间的作用力。这一努力取得了成功。实验的下一步是寻找标准模型(BSM)以外的物理学证据，例如，可以解释神秘的“暗物质”的存在，这种物质构成了宇宙的如此大的质量。大型强子对撞机目前正处于第二次运行中，能量几乎是之前探索的两倍，事件样本也显著增加。在这种更高的能量和更高的事件统计数据下，BSM物理的证据可能会出现。分析表明，路易斯安那理工大学是美国追求精确量子色动力学(QCD)测量的领先机构之一。特别是，该小组将新的方法应用于多喷流最终状态的精确测量。这样的研究意义重大，因为该小组测量的多喷流比以一种改善系统效应的方式提供了对强耦合常数的相对精确的测量，而强耦合常数是一个重要的物理量。此外，在这种多喷流参数中观察到的相对于QCD预测的任何偏差都可以为新的物理提供一个窗口。为了支持他们的工作和该领域的其他研究人员，路易斯安那理工大学小组开发了FAST软件程序，使研究人员能够对强子过程中的可观测参数进行快速微扰QCD预测。在更广泛的背景下，大型强子对撞机提供了一个极好的平台，为K-12学生和普通公众提供关于基础科学的拓展和交流，并作为路易斯安那北部地区物理专业学生到路易斯安那理工大学的招募工具。作为这一努力的一部分，路易斯安那理工大学集团将与当地高中合作，为物理学学生提供国际大师班，让他们有机会参观大学及其设施，并允许他们使用大型强子对撞机数据进行真实的分析。该项目由NSF物理部初级粒子物理计划和既定的激励竞争研究计划(EPSCoR)联合资助。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award will provide support to a Louisiana Tech University group working on the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, a particle physics laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland. The LHC machine and ATLAS, a large particle detector facility, were built as basic science tools using funds from NSF and other agencies around the world. One of their primary objectives was to find the Higgs Boson, the last particle in the historically successful "Standard Model" (SM) that accounts for so much of the existence of, and forces between, known particles forming the matter in the universe. This effort has been successful. The next step in the experiments is to look for evidence for physics Beyond the Standard Model (BSM) that might, for instance, account for the presence of the mysterious "Dark Matter" that makes up so much of the mass of the universe. The LHC is currently in the midst of Run 2, at almost twice the energy explored earlier and with significantly increased event samples. It is possible that evidence for BSM physics could emerge at this higher energy and with the higher event statistics. Analytically, Louisiana Tech is one of the leading institutions in the US pursuing precision Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) measurements. In particular, the group applies novel approaches to precision measurements of multi-jet final states. Such studies are significant because the multi-jet ratios that the group measures provide a relatively precise measurement of the strong coupling constant, an important physical quantity, in a manner that ameliorates systematic effects. In addition, any deviations observed in such multi-jet parameters with respect to QCD predictions can provide a window to new physics. In support of their work and other researchers in the field, the Louisiana Tech group has created fast software programs that allow researchers to make fast perturbative QCD predictions of observables in hadronic processes.In the broader context, the LHC provides an excellent platform for providing outreach and communication about basic science to K-12 students and the general public and serves as a recruiting tool for physics majors to Louisiana Tech from the north Louisiana area. As part of this effort, the Louisiana Tech group will partner with local high schools to provide International Masterclasses for physics students that will give them an opportunity to visit the university and its facilities and allow them to perform real analyses using LHC data.This project is jointly funded by the NSF Physics Division Elementary Particle Physics Program and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.