Precision Tests of the Standard Model: The Project 8 and Muon g-2 Experiments

Abstract: 

The Standard Model of Particle Physics is highly successful at predicting a wide range of phenomena. Only few experimental results have shown discrepancies with theory, indicating potential areas for new physics. Project 8 and Muon g-2 are both exploring discrepancies with Standard Model predictions through high-precision measurements. Project 8 aims to measure the neutrino mass, which is assumed to be zero within the Standard Model framework. Using Cyclotron Radiation Emission Spectroscopy to analyze tritium decay, Project 8 targets an unprecedented sensitivity to the neutrino mass of 40meV. The Muon g-2 experiment at Fermilab measures the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon, which is in tension with theory predictions, by injecting a polarized muon beam into a magnetic storage ring. In 2023, the collaboration released a new result, confirming previous measurements and reducing the uncertainty of the experimental world average to 0.19ppm. I will present the latest results from Project 8 and highlight the experiment’s journey toward achieving its ultimate sensitivity goal. I will further discuss recent advances in the Muon g-2 experiment, specifically the development of a new scintillating fiber detector enabling direct beam dynamics studies with high-statistics data, promising to further reduce the experiment’s systematic uncertainty.

 

Speaker : 

Christine Claessens, UW

Location: 

CENPA Conference Room NPL-178; Zoom link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/95071028354