Canadian particle physics received a boost earlier this year when the Canadian Foundation for Innovation announced support for nine infrastructure projects for international research. These include two projects in particle physics – a new International Facility for Underground Science and the KOPIO experiment. The nine projects, which are aimed at promoting Canada’s position in scientific research, were selected by a national competition with input from international experts.
The International Facility for Underground Science will be based at the site of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) at the Creighton mine in Ontario. Here the intention is to expand the site to become a facility for further experiments, in particular with international participation. Its administrative centre will be at Carleton University.
The aim of the KOPIO project, in which Canadian physicists are playing a leading role, is to use the Alternating Gradient Synchrotron at the Brookhaven National Laboratory to create an intense beam of kaons for the study of very rare decays, which can provide a window into the small differences between matter and antimatter.
