Members of our team, including Filipe DC, Pablo  JB, and Luis OS, recently had the opportunity to participate in a groundbreaking experiment held at CERN’s SPS HiRadMat facility. The team led by Charles Arrowsmith and Gianluca Gregori from Oxford University, our researchers joined forces with experts from Oxford University, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Rochester University, University of Iceland, Max Planck Institute, and IST to contribute to the project. Leveraging our expertise in theory and simulations, our team played a significant role in ensuring the success of the experiment. It is worth mentioning that Filipe and Pablo actively assisted in data collection and provided valuable theoretical support during the experimental run at the renowned facility located in Geneva.

The experiment, aptly named Fireball (HRMT-62), has a primary focus on studying micro-instabilities in high-intensity electron-positron beams interacting with low-density plasma. By examining the interactions between a 440 GeV/c proton beam and a specialized target, the experiment successfully generated a high-density electron-positron beam plasma. This groundbreaking achievement marks the first instance of creating such a high-density electron-positron beam plasma. The resulting system, characterized by magnetic field fluctuations inducing charge separation within the beam, exhibits non-linear phenomena and plasma emissions that open up exciting new avenues for further investigation.

The research conducted within the Fireball experiment aims to deepen our understanding of extreme astrophysical phenomena observed in blazar jets and gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). These GRBs, known for their immense energy, which can influence the evolution of galaxies and the early universe. However, the underlying fundamental physical processes responsible for GRBs have remained elusive thus far.

The collaborative efforts involving both CERN and external institutions brought together a diverse team from various renowned institutions. This collaboration fostered a rich exchange of expertise, enabling a fruitful environment for knowledge sharing that greatly contributed to the success of the experiment.

For more information on HiRadMat and Fireball check the CERN Bulletin article.