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[PAST EVENT] Physics Colloquium - Dr. Devi Adhikari
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- Open to the public
Dr. Devi Adhikari, Virginia Tech
Title: Probing Nuclear Structure and Testing the Standard Model of Particle Physics through Parity-Violating Electron Scattering
Abstract: Parity-violating electron scattering (PVES), which measures the asymmetry in the scattering of longitudinally polarized electrons off fixed targets, has seen significant improvements in precision over the past three decades. These asymmetries are sensitive to weak neutral current interactions, mediated by the Z boson, between electrons and quarks or between two electrons. PVES has been extensively used to explore the structure of atomic nuclei and test the limits of electroweak theory (the Standard Model of Particle Physics), providing complementary insights to direct searches for new physics at high energy colliders.
In this talk, I will discuss parity violation in weak interactions, introduce the concept of PVES, provide a brief history of its development, and give an overview of its application in determining the neutron skin thickness of 208Pb and 48Ca nuclei. Additionally, I will discuss its use in the MOLLER experiment, which aims to explore new physics beyond the Standard Model with unprecedented precision.
Sponsored by: Physics