Postcard from CERN
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Hannah Jefferies, Head of Research Communications in External Relations, writes about her visit to the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) and how physicists from the University of Liverpool are contributing to research and experiments that are unlocking the secrets of our universe.
Back in February I was invited by the Science and Technologies Facilities Council (STFC) to visit the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva. This was a dedicated tour for UK university press and communications officers whose research staff are involved in the major physics experiments taking place there.
With the University having recently launched a new Research frontier in Particle Physics, I was keen to gain more of an insight into this complex academic field that aims to understand the basic building blocks of our universe. A significant part of my role is to explain scientific ideas to a general audience, so this presented the perfect opportunity to observe first-hand how Liverpool researchers are contributing vital skills and expertise to global physics collaborations.
We had an extremely well-organised itinerary for the two days, and were able to stay on site in the CERN hostel, which is open to all staff working at the facility or visiting as an invited guest. It was somewhat of a flashback to my university days in halls, but it was comfortable and convenient, and after doing nearly 19,000 steps on the first day, a place close by to rest weary legs was most certainly welcome!
Stephanie Hills, European Communications and Stakeholder Manager for STFC kicked off the tour with an excellent overview of CERN, taking us right back to its very beginnings. CERN was founded in 1954, built to counter the Manhattan Project and bring European scientists together for a common peaceful goal. An initiative that I’m sure resonates with many of us during these current testing times.
CERN is also the birthplace of the Worldwide Web, something that I hadn’t fully appreciated before this trip. Computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee worked at CERN in the 1980s and wanted to find a more efficient way for scientists there to communicate and share documents. His initial proposal is on display, as well as his computer which operated as the first web server. Amazing to think how far this invention has come since 1989!
The UK is one of the biggest funders of CERN and our scientists are taking part in broad range of experiments with various collaborators from across the globe. Every single result that comes out of CERN is something that wasn’t known before, and helps build up a picture of how the universe was formed. Physicists from Liverpool are involved in a wide range of experiments such as ALICE, AEGIS, ATLAS, and FASER, not only conducting the experiments but also designing and constructing specific parts for the large particle accelerators, many of which are stamped with the University logo, as you can see below:
It was fascinating to visit the different parts of the site – which I should add is huge. The Large Hadron Collider (LHC ) - which is 27 kilometres long and lies 100 metres underground - is the world’s largest and most powerful particle accelerator. It encircles a significant part of the CERN site, and the beams inside it collide at four particle detectors – ATLAS, CMS, LHCb and ALICE. Unfortunately, the lift to the LHC was broken on the day of our visit, so we were only able to see it from the control centre cameras. We did, however, get to go underground and don our hard hats to see ATLAS, which was an incredibly impressive sight - it looked a little like something out of Star Wars. This huge detector explores the nature of dark matter and whether there are previously undiscovered forces or particles in play. It is due for an upgrade next year, and precision parts are being made in the University’s Clean Room facility right here on our campus.
In between tours and talks I was able to meet with some of our researchers to find out what it’s really like to work at CERN. In the Antimatter Factory I met with Professor Carsten Welsch and Benjamin Rienäcker who are involved with AEGIS. The measurements from this experiment were recognised as a global top 10 physics breakthrough in 2024, with further exciting developments hoped for in the hunt for the properties of elusive antimatter.
Later, I met PhD students Mehul and Sinead, who spoke enthusiastically about the experiences and opportunities they were gaining whilst at CERN. Alongside their academic collaborative work, they have opportunities to train as guides so that they can lead tours of the site as well as take part in outreach work to enthuse young people about science. In addition, all resident staff are trained on how to deal with technical issues with the experiments they are working on and are placed on a shift rota in case of an emergency. Sinead was actually ‘on shift’ when I spoke to her but thankfully there were no alerts that day for her. Generally speaking, there don’t seem to be many issues, but it was reassuring to learn that CERN also has its own dedicated fire and rescue service!
As well as particle physics, there are also nuclear physics experiments taking place on a different part of the complex, and we have a number of Liverpool researchers and technical teams involved in this area too. ISOLDE is the oldest and one of the most successful facilities at CERN conducting around 40-50 experiments per year. Dr Liam Gaffney explained how for PhD students working here it offers a lot of freedom to lead their own experiments – they have an idea, they test it, they build it from scratch and install it. Then they write their theses with the data they collect, and there is a huge amount of pride in being able to manage the whole process from ideas to outputs.
I also managed to squeeze in a visit to the excellent visitor’s centre which has hands on experiments and interactive activities to help aid the understanding of the different experiments and questions the researchers at CERN are trying to answer. This is free and open to the public, and I can also highly recommend the gift shop (everyone back home got a hard hat keyring!).
So, did I return home knowing all there is to know about the universe, and wow my friends and family with a complete understanding of particle physics? Not quite… however, what I did gain was a sincere admiration for the collaborative spirit and approach to research that CERN has fostered for several decades, and is very much still going strong. The site had a University campus vibe, with a friendly and welcoming atmosphere. Sitting in the main restaurant typing up my notes, you could sense how collaborations emerge very easily here. I heard at least eight different languages being spoken, with common ground eventually found, and I got the feeling that great ideas weren’t just forged in the lab - they were also instigated over lunch or in the queue for coffee.
I was also struck by the sheer enthusiasm and passion people had for their work, and how the importance of working with others was evident everywhere. Seeing the detectors and the facilities in action, observing researchers interact with each other, and how people’s day to day lives are in this fantastically unique facility has given me a wider contextual understanding of how this type of research works. It was also evident what a significant role Liverpool plays in the experiments, and the specific expertise that our researchers and technical staff bring to the different activities at CERN.
When the next set of ground breaking results emerge, I’ll still need a thorough explanation from an expert, but I will have a better understanding of how those results came about and that collaboration will be very much at the heart of it all.
Explore more
Explore the fascinating history of Liverpool’s relationship with CERN
Read about our researchers working on major experiments at CERN in the Times Higher Education