Mainz physicist start pioneering particle experiments with EU funding!

Mainz physicist start pioneering particle experiments with EU funding!

Mainz, Deutschland - On June 6, 2025, it became known that the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) received generous funding of around 180,000 euros. This funding is part of the European research initiative to support basic research in particle physics. According to uni-mainz.de the money for the participation of the Excellence Cluster Prisma+ will be in important experiments such as TSPECT and MU3E as well as to support the international consortia nemesis and beyond used.

The consortia nemesis and Beyond deal with central questions of modern particle physics and bundled expertise from different countries, including Europe, the USA and Japan. NEMESIS, which stands for "Neutron Experiment Join Muon Experiments for Synergy in Investigation and Search for New Physics", and Beyond, "Search for Physics The Standard Model at the High Intensity Frontier, From New Physics to Spin-Offs," have the goal of promoting innovative research in this dynamic field. These projects were selected by the Marie-Skłodowska-Curie measures (MSCA) that aim to promote highly qualified researchers.

research focus

The funds provided should primarily cover the travel expenses for researchers from the JGU, which are involved in the TSPECT, N2EDM and MU3E experiments at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) in Switzerland. TSPECT focuses on examining the lifespan of free neutrons and aims to clarify a discrepancy between different measurement methods. A particularly interesting feature of TSPECT is the technology to capture ultracal neutrons without accelerating the particles, which enables a high precision during the examination.

mu3e, on the other hand, aims to discover a so -called "forbidden" decay of a myon in three electrons or positrons. An observation of this decay could be evaluated as a reference to "new physics" beyond the standard model. Prominent scientists such as Prof. Dr. Martin Fertl and Prof. Dr. Niklaus Berger from the JGU, who contribute significantly to commissioning and data recording of the experiments.

biological weapons and their development

While important progress is made in particle physics, the topic of biological weapons remains a serious challenge. Historically, biological weapons have played a dangerous role, a bacterium can be divided every 20 minutes and thus produced in large quantities in a short time. According to spektrum.de , the threats from disease-transmitting pathogens that can multiply in the environment are significant. The spread of the Ebola virus, which can kill up to 90% of the infected within a week in extreme cases, shows the potential dangers that emerge from biological weapons.

In addition, the attack with the nerve gas Sarin in the Tokyo subway led to an increased awareness of the dangers of such weapons. Unknown perpetrators released gas on March 20, 1995, which led to 12 deaths and over 5500 injuries. Biological weapons are particularly worrying because they are contagious and can therefore spread. This leads to the urgent need to better monitor the handling of pathogens.