The discovery of a particle that changes once every 10 billion is a Naples discovery

In recent weeks, the newspaper Mattino has aptly reported a certain number of cases of scientists, businessmen and artists who, having spent part of their professional lives away from Naples, decided to return there. This highlights that the general atmosphere in the city today encourages excellence in various fields. Announcing the results of an important experiment called NA62conducted in laboratories CERN. 200 researchers from European, American, Canadian, Mexican and Russian institutions participated in the experiment. Among them is Federico II, in the Physics Department to which he belongs Fabio Ambrosinoa highly regarded physicist, is among the scientific and organizational leaders of the experiment. And the Infn division in Naples with which it cooperates Renato Fiorenzaa young and very brilliant researcher, student Fabio Ambrosino, who studied at Federicien University and is a doctoral student at Southern High School.

He’s part of a very small group of people who have been tasked with actually analyzing the massive trial data. Therefore, it has a place of absolute importance in the success it achieves.

A team of Neapolitan physicists

All this within a group of talented Neapolitan physicists: Marco Francesconi, Rafael Giordano, Paolo Massarotti, Marco Mira, Ilaria Rosa, Giulio Saraceno. And the great master Marco Napolitano. But what does discovery consist of? We will avoid technical excesses. Something partly prevents us from telling the actual extent of the outcome. But there is no other way to reach the general public than to simplify as much as possible. What is the meaning of writing sentences like “The experiment involves the decay of a charged kaon into a charged pion and two neutrinos?” At this point, 999 readers out of 1,000 will change the article, and possibly the newspaper. To understand the complexity of the task, just consider that it was through this experiment that a phenomenon (decay) that physicists have been trying to observe for more than thirty years was observed, which occurs in less than one case in 10 billion. In fact, searching for laboratory confirmation of such rare events is a very complex task that requires the cooperation of hundreds of scientists and years of collecting data 24 hours a day, monitoring what is happening.

Experience

The problem here is to design an experiment by building an experimental structure dictated by the theoretical and technological knowledge available today. During the experiment it is necessary to constantly update the experimental equipment and data collection techniques to obtain increasingly improved results. In short, it is a construction site that has been open continuously for more than 10 years, and its management is very sensitive. Small error. Wire hurts the connection. Inaccurate interpretation of a piece of data. And the experience is wasted. It is a gigantic task that can only be undertaken if driven by great enthusiasm and conducted by expert scientists. Obviously, physicists who take these paths must have a very strong theoretical preparation, otherwise they will not know where to direct the search for the rare event. And how to try to photograph it.

In short, they are fields in which culture, theory, a lot of mathematics and a lot of physics are mixed. In addition to great technological sensitivity.

Without bothering Ulysses and “You were not created to live like animals but to pursue virtue and knowledge” it is interesting to answer the question: What is the ultimate interest in going and exploring such rare events?

In fact, this is the main point of the experiment. Today’s elementary particle physics is, more or less, framed in a general set of rules called… Standard form. However, not everyone is yet at the final stage of knowledge of the basic laws of nature.

Well, the decay experiment provides evidence, if not evidence, that there may be new physics outside the Standard Model. The measurement made is the most accurate one obtained to date.

Economic sustainability

For the sake of completeness, I would just like to point out that the real problem for particle physics is economic sustainability. Experiments cost a fortune. One day, a friend, also a physicist, told me that “by checking the standard model, we will end up closing hospitals.” I mentioned this point of view to express my point: “By validating the standard model, we will end up with better hospitals.” I blindly believe in the social value and benefit of knowledge growth.

We conclude by observing that the cultural vitality of the scientific world in Naples is demonstrated not so much by the return of competent scholars from abroad, but by the presence of many of great value who have remained here. Realizing that the conditions are available to emerge on the international scene without disappearing. Fabio Ambrosino, Renato Fiorenza and the others are a prime example of this.