muon collider

Physicists are exploring the development of a muon collider — an advanced particle accelerator that could reveal new insights into the nature of our universe. Though great challenges exist in studying fast-decaying muons, technological advancements in accelerators, magnets and detectors could make building the collider a reality. Recent workshops hosted by Fermilab brought together researchers from around the globe to address some of these challenges.

Over 100 accelerator scientists, engineers and particle physicists gathered at Fermilab last fall for the first of a new series of workshops to discuss the future of beam-cooling technology for a muon collider.

With the most recent P5 report, particle physicists have come together to chart a course for the next decade which includes focus on the international DUNE experiment taking place at Fermilab and in Lead, South Dakota.

An accelerator known as a muon collider could revolutionize particle physics—if it can be built. The December 2023 P5 report calls for R&D on a muon collider, stating, “This is our muon shot.” A muon collider could fit on the campus of Fermilab, enabling the U.S. to reclaim the lead in the continuing competition for the highest energy collider.

The P5 panel’s recent recommendation of “our muon shot”, states that a muon accelerator program would fit with the U.S.’s ambition to host a major international collider facility. With the development, it would probe an understanding of the fundamental nature of the universe and offer substantial benefits when it comes to training the next generation of scientists.

The P5 Panel’s bold suggestion to build a muon collider in the U.S. could be a good opportunity to unite particle physicists from around the world to establish whether a muon collider is feasible, at what cost and discover who can contribute expertise and facilities.

The most recent P5 report suggests funding support for research at Argonne and Fermilab, showing Chicagoland as a hub for the future of particle physics. The report recommended exploring the possibility of building a revolutionary new particle collider at Fermilab, more powerful than the LHC, and reinforced support of the Fermilab led DUNE project.

From the UKRI’s Science and Technology Facilities Council, Feb. 5, 2020: For the first time scientists have observed muon ionization cooling – a major step in being able to create the world’s most powerful particle accelerator. This new muon accelerator will give us a better understanding of the fundamental constituents of matter.

The Muon Ionization Cooling Experiment has achieved its goal of squeezing a beam of muons before they decay.

For the first time, scientists have observed muon ionization cooling — a major step toward the realization of the muon collider. If built, a future muon collider could provide 10 times the discovery reach of CERN’s Large Hadron Collider.