Nikhef is focusing on projects in subatomic physics where the Dutch contribution can make a difference. This is reflected in the new multi-year strategy published online today.
The document describes research priorities for the period 2023-2028 of the institute and its six university partners. The strategy appears simultaneously with Nikhef’s 2017-2022 review in preparation for the SEP review in November.
Nikhef has traditionally been involved in large international experiments and projects that seek to understand the foundations of the universe experimentally and theoretically.
This will remain the case in the coming years, but there will also be an emphasis on innovation and further development of the organization itself.
The strategy document, 50 pages with the characteristic cropped upper left corner, outlines the commitment to four themes: increasing knowledge, delivering technology, preparing for the future and fostering healthy collaboration.
The mission remains unchanged-to fathom the universe in terms of elementary particles and fundamental forces. The research thereby extends from the very smallest, the particles, to the very largest, the universe itself. Connecting the large and the small, is the motto.
The Nikhef research program remains focused on participation in international experiments, both in data analysis and instrumentation, and theoretical physics. Major themes include the Higgs particle, quarks, neutrinos, dark matter, cosmic rays and neutrinos, and fundamental properties of the electron.
In addition, the study of gravitational waves is becoming even more prominent. In the analyses of huge amounts of measurement data, the use of artificial intelligence and quantum computers is increasingly being tested.
For participation in large international collaborations, Nikhef’s own mechanical, electronic and computer technology groups are and will remain decisive. Nikhef designs, builds and operates components of large detectors and observatories and takes emphatic responsibility for them.
Example is the Einstein Telescope, a European detector for gravitational waves in preparation, or in new neutrino and dark matter experiments in the US. Nikhef is also doing intensive research into new fast-timing detection techniques, needed to follow particle processes in accelerators live in time and place in the future.
There are also emphatic ambitions for the Nikhef organization itself. The institute wants to offer an open and diverse working environment, with attention to its role in society. The renovated Nikhef building at Amsterdam Science Park will become a key in outreach to young talents business partners and other visitors. In addition, the goal is to make both research and operations climate-neutral by 2030.
Online, the full (English) Nikhef Strategy 2023-2028 can be read at nikhef.nl/strategie, as can the Nikhef SEP self-assessment 2017-2022. Printed versions are available upon request. Below you will find the browsable versions.
