Abu Dhabi: Three UAE-based universities will represent the UAE as cluster institutions in the ATLAS experiment, one of the largest collaborative science efforts.
ATLAS is a particle physics experiment at the European Organisation for Nuclear and Particle Physics Research’s (CERN) Large Hadron Collider (LHC). It is dedicated to discovering the Higgs boson, an elementary component in the physics framework that defines everything in the known universe, and NYU Abu Dhabi, UAE University and the University of Sharjah – the UAE ATLAS Cluster – will co-operate to build a coherent effort for it.
The agreement between CERN, Geneva, the UAE ATLAS Cluster, and NYUAD took place during an event hosted by NYUAD’s Science Division, the Abu Dhabi-based university said in a statement. Andreas Hoecker, elected ATLAS Spokesperson 2021-2023, delivered a keynote speech, and co-signed the MoU with NYUAD Vice-Chancellor Mariët Westermann and Dean of Science and Professor of Physics at NYUAD, and ATLAS Team Leader Marta Losada, to mark the beginning of the collaboration.
NYUAD contributions
Losada was already part of the wide-scale international ATLAS collaboration that discovered the Higgs boson in 2012. The particle associated with the Higgs field, an energy field that transmits mass to the elementary particles that travel through it. Peter Higgs and Francois Englert theorised in 1964 that this is how elementary particles in the universe came to have mass.an elementary component in the physics framework that defines everything in the known universe. The observation of the particle was the last hidden component on the journey of solidifying the fundamental model of physics.
“This is such a rewarding and inspiring moment at the same time. ATLAS’ exploration pushes the frontiers of knowledge by seeking answers to fundamental questions and it is such a privilege for us to be part of this quest for the unknown. NYUAD has huge potential, I only had to come here once to recognize it and this collaboration is an unparalleled opportunity for the advancement of science at NYUAD and the development of research capacity in the UAE,” Losada said.
International effort
ATLAS is a collaboration of physicists, engineers, technicians, students, and support staff from around the world that continues discovering some of the most important innovative developments in technology and physics in the search for the unknown, thus exploring and discovering new phenomena beyond existing theoretical predictions. ATLAS physicists are studying the fundamental constituents of matter to better understand the rules behind their interactions. Their research has led to ground-breaking discoveries, such as that of the Higgs boson.
