Researchers led by Cambridge University scientists have announced observations from experiments at the Large Hadron Collider involving particles at unprecedented scales. The work involved analyzing collisions of atoms to study subatomic particles, specifically beauty quarks that decay in trillionths of a second. By observing interactions at a scale of a billion-trillionth of a metre—a realm some physicists call the zeptoverse—scientists believe they may be gaining access to phenomena that could help explain dark matter, which comprises much of the universe but remains difficult to detect directly.
The detection of these particle interactions at such extreme scales represents a significant development because theoretical physics suggests that at these dimensions, particles may be particularly sensitive to dark matter’s influence. This sensitivity could enable researchers to indirectly detect dark matter by observing how it affects particle behavior. Dr. Harry Cliff, who led the analysis, indicated that the findings represent preliminary steps into this frontier of physics, comparing it to “knocking on the door” of the zeptoverse.
The international collaboration involving 28 countries has approved a £150m upgrade to the detector that would increase the frequency of observable particle decays tenfold, potentially enabling deeper exploration of this domain. However, funding challenges have emerged following a UK government decision to withdraw support for the upgrade. The withdrawal has raised concerns among researchers about the nation’s continued involvement in the project and its ability to train new scientists in fundamental physics research.
Notably, early-career researchers like Dr. Mary Richardson-Slipper, who contributed to the zeptoverse discovery, are reconsidering their positions in UK institutions due to reduced funding opportunities. Prof. Tim Gershon, leading the international LHCb collaboration, emphasized that reduced UK participation could limit the nation’s access to major discoveries and deprive the country of benefits from training emerging researchers. Despite these concerns, UKRI maintains that the UK remains Cern’s second largest funder at approximately £175m annually and continues pursuing alternative infrastructure investments.
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