Centre research projects receive LIEF grants

Paul Jackson, Elisabetta Barberio and Lindsey Bignell

Research projects led by Centre members Elisabetta Barberio, Paul Jackson and Lindsey Bignell have received ARC LIEF funding, announced on November 6.

Professor Jackson will lead a project titled, ‘Enabling the future of the Australian collider physics program’, while Professor Barberio will lead the, ‘Construction of the SABRE South full-scale dark matter detector’.

Dr Bignell said he was thrilled that the ARC had decided to support the LIEF 2025 proposal, ‘A recoil imaging detector module for directional particle physics’.

“The research team behind this proposal involves CDM researchers at ANU, Adelaide, Melbourne, and Sydney, as well as collaborators the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory (SUPL) and international institutions,” Dr Bignell said.

“Together, we will build an innovative particle detector called CYGNET, that is uniquely sensitive to the direction of incoming particles. CYGNET will form the basis of a future major experiment at SUPL, and offers outstanding translational opportunities in neutron detection for applications in defense and environmental monitoring.”

Professor Jackson said he was delighted with the ARC funding to continue Australia's valued exploration of the fundamental constituents of nature. 

“This LIEF grant funds one of the key programs of the Centre in facilitating the search for the collider production of dark matter at the Large Hadron Collider by providing consistent funding for maintenance and operation of the ATLAS experiment and support for our computing needs,” he said.

“Nationally we partner with colleagues outside of the Centre to also provide support for the growing collider particle physics program in Australia to fund involvement in the LHCb and Belle II experiments.”

The LIEF funding will also support the construction of the SABRE South full-scale dark matter detector, led by Professor Barberio.