Michele Veronesi, PhD at Nikhef, will defend his thesis Monday 15 November 2021 at 11.45 at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
“Quantum oscillations of neutral particles with the beauty quark”
The development of quantum mechanics since the beginning of the 20th century has guided the exploration of nature at the atomic scale. The analysis of particles produced in cosmic rays and accelerators allowed to study the quantum mechanical behaviour of neutral mesons and gain insights into the fundamental quantum fields governing the interactions of matter. The measurement of wave-like properties, such as oscillation frequencies and interference patterns, is achieved by studying the rate of change of neutral particles into their anti-matter counterpart.
This thesis presents the most precise measurement of the oscillation frequency of the B_s meson, a neutral state made by the combination of a beauty and a strange quark, using data from the LHCb experiment. Since boson and fermion fields enter virtually in B_s-B_sbar transitions, the measurement of the B_s oscillation frequency does not only offer a laboratory to study the beautiful quantum mechanical properties of the subatomic world, but also provides a gateway to the relativistic quantum fields constituting all elementary particles and fundamental interactions.
“Quantum oscillations of neutral particles with the beauty quark” (pdf)
The PhD defense will take place Monday 15 november, at 11.45 at the Aula of the Vrije Universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105, 1081 HV Amsterdam.
The defense will be broadcasted online on the VU YouTube channel
More information on the website of the VU.
Supervisor: prof. dr. M.H.M. Merk
Co-supervisor: dr. N. Tuning
Contact: Michele Veronesi