Students from schools across the North West joined scientists from the Cockcroft Institute (CI) at Daresbury Laboratory on March 14th and 15th for the annual particle physics master class. Building on the successes of previous years, and acknowledging the unique opportunities available in running a master class at a national laboratory, the CI outreach group obtained agreement from the Institute of Physics to shift the emphasis towards accelerator design and performance, thereby show-casing the technologies that facilitate particle physics experiments. This was essentially the first particle and accelerator physics master class.
Some new activities were run this year, including an exercise to show how the basic design parameters for the Diamond Light Source were calculated from the target specifications, and a new and challenging exercise to study how an electron bunch is both compressed and rotated in space to maximise the peak current before it is used to drive the free-electron laser on the ALICE accelerator. Backed by other tried-and-tested exercises to estimate the injector beam energy in ALICE using only some basic physics and a few simple measurements, plus particle physics simulations, and further supported by lectures on the quark model of particle physics and aspects of particle accelerator science, the programme of activities offered this year at Daresbury was the best yet. This was echoed in feedback received from some of the schools:
“We all really enjoyed it and found the level about right – quite challenging but grounded in things that they were familiar with. It brought the subject alive for the students. Please add us to your mailing list!” – Richard Newstead, Congleton Highschool
“Thank you for your talk and demonstration etc. on Monday when we attended the master class. The students certainly appreciated it, especially Joe who also won the quiz!” – Sunita Bremner, Newcastle-under-Lyme School
Even the lunch break was used as a learning experience in the packed programme of activities. A buffet lunch was laid on in the science centre, and students mingled with CI staff, answering questions and discussing various particle accelerators around the world, backed by video presentations from some of the world’s leading accelerator facilities. In a light-hearted but highly-engaging fashion, the subtleties of vacuum science were demonstrated with a bell jar and a series of supporting props. With a sandwich in one hand and a prop in the other, students saw a demonstration of the triple point of water, how light can propagate in a vacuum but not sound, and the power of vacuum using a pair of Magdeburg spheres.
Lee Jones, lead organiser of the event said
[quote align=”center” color=”#999999″]our master class programme goes from strength-to-strength, and judging by the comments I am hearing from students, we are doing the right things. I am very grateful to the team who have made this possible, and we are all looking forward to next yea[/quote]