Grant: Subatomic Physics Envelope - Major Resources Support Program

This grant is in support of fundamental astroparticle physics research at Queen's University and with our collaborators on SNOLAB related projects. SNOLAB is a new International Facility for Underground Science in Sudbury, Ontario. The goals of the research are to design, build and operate new state-of-the-art detectors which will be sited in SNOLAB. The detectors will provide valuable information on the nature of dark matter, the properties of the elusive neutrino, the thermal heat content of the earth, and supernovae. The Universe is known to be comprised of about 25% dark matter. It can be observed through the gravitational effects it has on galaxies, yet we have never detected it directly, and have little idea what form of matter it is. Very little is known about the neutrino, the most prolific form of matter in the Universe. The major discoveries by the SNO and other experiments led to the realization that neutrinos have mass and unusual quantum properties. By understanding neutrinos at a deeper level we will learn about basic properties of this fundamental particle at the smallest of scales. This will lead to a better understanding of the neutrinos role in the formation and evolution of structures within the Universe. With the right properties, neutrinos could explain why we live in a universe dominated by matter, rather than anti-matter. Neutrinos are also a probe into the inner workings of supernovae star collapse, and in an interesting twist, may be used to study the production of heat in the core of the earth. Neutrinos are released in radioactive decays, which are thought to be largely responsible for the heat content of the earth. A sensitive measurement of this is of great interest to geologists. This funding will provide support for technical staff at Queen's University. They will help develop complex detectors for installation in SNOLAB. A major design element for all these detectors is the need for ultra-low levels of radioactivity and this award will also support the operation of a facility capable of measuring low levels of radioactivity in a wide variety of materials. These resources are generally available to collaborations working on SNOLAB applications.