A novel concept for the detection of tau neutrino appearance

A novel concept for the detection of tau neutrinos is presented, potentially suitable for use in a long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment. It relies on the direct identification of the tau leptons produced in charged-current interactions, by imaging the Cherenkov light that the tau generates in C6F14 liquid. In a simple simulation about half of the tau leptons can be successfully identified in this way.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure

Review of VcbV_{cb} and Vtd/VtsV_{td}/V_{ts}

The current experimental status of the CKM matrix element V_cb and the ratio V_td/V_ts is reviewed. Knowledge of these elements has a strong impact on the unitarity triangle, of interest for studies of CP violation in the B system. The measurements of V_cb from both inclusive semileptonic b decays and the exclusive channel B -> D* l nu are reaching high precision. For V_td/V_ts the strongest upper limit is derived from studies of B-Bbar mixing

Ring-Imaging Cherenkov Detectors for LHCb

The particle identification system proposed for the LHCb experiment is presented. It consists of ring-imaging Cherenkov detectors with three radiator materials, including the novel use of aerogel in an imaging detector. The photodetectors under development are multipixel hybrid photodiodes, which will allow high performance to be achieved due to their excellent single-photon efficiency and high spatial resolution. Significant pion/kaon separation will be possible for isolated tracks with momenta between 1 and 150 GeV/c; the first studies of pattern recognition in regions of high track density are described

Collider experiments: the LHC and beyond

The basic concepts of experimental particle physics at colliders are presented, over four introductory lectures, using examples taken from the highest energy collider in the world: the LHC at CERN. The physics motivation for collider experiments is discussed, followed by an introduction of the accelerators and experiments at CERN and elsewhere. An overview of the principles of particle detection and of the different types of detectors is given. The physics highlights at the LHC are discussed and an outlook beyond the Standard Model and the LHC is given

Lecture summaries

Abstracts of lectures included in the volume

Averaging lifetimes for B hadron species

The measurement of the lifetimes of the individual B species are of great interest. Many of these measurements are well below the 10 $\%$ level of precision. However, in order to reach the precision necessary to test the current theoretical predictions, the results from different experiments need to be averaged. Therefore, the relevant systematic uncertainties of each measurement need to be well defined in order to understand the correlations between the results from different experiments. \par In this paper we discuss the dominant sources of systematic errors which lead to correlations between the different measurements. We point out problems connected with the conventional approach of combining lifetime data and discuss methods which overcome these problems

Beam Spot Position Measurement at the LEP Collider

A precise knowledge of the beam spot position is required for many physics topics at LEP2. The movement of the beam spot is studied at LEP1 using beam orbit monitors close to the interaction points and compared with measurements from tracks produced in e+e- collisions. The beam orbit monitors are found to follow the beam spot position well, particularly when corrected for movements of nearby quadrupole magnets. Data from the LEP high energy run of November 1995 are also analysed, and projections made for the prospects at LEP2

Development, characterization and beam tests of a small-scale TORCH prototype module

Within the TORCH (Time Of internally Reflected CHerenkov light) R&D; project, a small-scale TORCH prototype module is currently under study. Circular-shaped micro-channel plate photon detectors with finely segmented square anodes (32 X 32 channels) have been produced for TORCH requirements in industrial partnership. A new generation of custom multi-channel electronics based on the 32-channel NINO and HPTDC ASICs has been developed. The performance of the photon detector coupled to these customized electronics has been assessed in the laboratory and is reported on. A time resolution of 80 ps and a spatial resolution of 0.03 mm have been measured. Finally, tests of the TORCH prototype module illuminated with laser light and in a charged particle beam will be highlighted