A Level Physics trip to CERN

At the end of the Michaelmas Term, 15 A Level Physics students travelled to Geneva to visit CERN. 

The three day trip included a number of sites and facilities at the largest laboratory in the world where the biggest – and most expensive – experiments access the smallest and most fundamental constituents of our universe. 

Head of Physics, Dr Bosworth, was excited to be back at CERN for the first time since 2019.

He said: “The pandemic meant that we haven’t been able to run our annual trip for two years. 

“Visiting CERN is an incredible opportunity for students to consolidate and extend their work on particle physics, and to see first hand the applications and opportunities that scientific research facilitates, so it was great to be back.”

Students enjoyed visiting the different facilities at CERN and were particularly fascinated by the antimatter decelerator. This is where atoms of anti-hydrogen are produced so that their behaviour can be studied. 

Another highlight was the Data Centre which collects huge volumes of data from the site’s experiments. It is here that the data is filtered, stored and subsequently analysed.

Students also attended a number of public and private seminars and workshop sessions. 

Dr Bosworth concluded: “Trips like this are such a great opportunity to build on what we teach in the classroom and I know that these students have benefitted from what they have seen and learned at CERN.

“We also enjoyed a bit of Swiss culture, not least the traditional fondue evening which is always a big hit.”