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Emily Spence (Carleton University)8/12/26, 11:00โฏAMSession II
This thesis investigates whether an external gravitational wave (GW) can meaningfully alter the inspiral of an existing compact binary. Using linearized general relativity, geodesic deviation, and a driven-oscillator model applied to systems including PSR B1913+16 and OJ 287, I find that realistic external waves are far too weak to have a significant effect, although an extreme hypothetical...
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Sanjit Patil (SNOLAB)8/12/26, 11:12โฏAMSession II
The RAdioactive isotope Measurement Program at SNOLAB (RAMPS) is a deep-underground nuclear-physics experiment designed to perform precision measurements of rare decays in long-lived isotopes. This is of particular interest to geochronology, astrophysics, and nuclear physics. Its pilot experiment aims to search for the previously unobserved electron-capture (EC) decay of $^{176}$Lu to the...
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Frederick Aguirre-Levesque (SNOLAB)8/12/26, 11:24โฏAMSession II
This report details a project management placement at SNOLAB, highlighting contributions to chemical storage shed proposals, heavy transformer mounting designs, and complex surface and underground logistics. Overcoming these diverse challenges yielded invaluable, hands-on experience in applied mechanical engineering and project execution.
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Mr Driss Mestiri8/12/26, 11:36โฏAMSession II
I present a simulation-based inference framework that characterizes dark matter microphysics through GD-1 stellar stream perturbations. By training advanced neural networks on millions of simulated streams, the pipeline can return calibrated parameter posteriors and model-class probabilities for cold, self-interacting and ultra-light dark matter, as well as baryonic perturbers down to 3ร10โถ...
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Ms Cary Kan (University of Toronto)8/12/26, 11:48โฏAMSession II
Using Machine Learning models trained on simulated detector responses, we have made predictions of the energy and position of candidate dark matter collisions with ordinary matter in cryogenic germanium crystals at SNOLAB. Analysis of these results shows that mismatches between the samples used to train the models and data depend on event position, specifically at the detector's edges, and...
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Ty Bell8/12/26, 12:00โฏPMSession II
DarkSide-20k is a novel dark matter detector that will use a dual-phase time projection chamber with 20 tonnes of liquid argon to search for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles. As part of the data acquisition system, pulse-level information is monitored online. In this talk, I will share how correlated pulses from the liquid and gas phases can be used to monitor the argon-39 background in...
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Qwin Goodwin (Queen's University)8/12/26, 12:12โฏPMSession VII
In the Lambda Cold Dark Matter paradigm, galaxy properties scale with those of their dark matter halo. As a galaxyโs stellar mass increases, one can expect a larger dark matter halo. When halo mass decreases, the efficiency at which stars form from the gas inside the halo also decreases, until star formation does not occur. This results in dark matter halos filled with atomic hydrogen (HI) and...
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Aviv David (McGill University)8/12/26, 2:10โฏPMSession III
Magnetic fields are observed across the universe, but their origin remains an open question. In this talk, I will explore how an ultralight pseudoscalar dark matter field could generate cosmological magnetic fields after recombination, and present numerical results showing when this process becomes efficient.
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Elspeth Bruce (University of Calgary)8/12/26, 2:23โฏPMSession III
The ALPHA (Antihydrogen Laser PHysics Apparatus) experiment, based at CERN, studies the matter-antimatter asymmetry problem through precision measurements of antihydrogen atoms. A key component of this experiment is the microwave injection system, used for controlling atomic spin states and characterizing magnetic fields that trap and release neutral anti-atoms. My project centres on the...
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Lyssa Dale-Davies (University of Toronto)8/12/26, 2:36โฏPMSession III
The Super Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (SuperCDMS) aims to directly detect dark matter using cryogenic crystal detectors and superconducting sensors. Predicting the position and energy of particle detection events is an essential part of the experiment, and the complexity of the data makes machine learning (ML) techniques ideal. We discuss the use of ML tools and detector modelling to make...
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Jonathan Finer (University of Toronto)8/12/26, 2:48โฏPMSession III
At typical concentrations underground, radon gas would be expected to be a dominant background source for the SuperCDMS experiment. To combat this, we built a barrier and purge system this summer to maintain a low-radon atmosphere within the interstitial space around the detectors.
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Will Gray (McGill University)8/12/26, 3:00โฏPMSession III
We investigated the performance of a pulse-IV multiplexer designed to characterize large SiPM arrays. Experiments performed on a four-SiPM test tile submerged in liquid nitrogen demonstrated the multiplexer's capabilities while identifying limitations in the single photoelectron (SPE) resolution. Results showed that improvements to the signal-to-noise ratio are required before the system can...
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Berin Sancakdar (SNOLAB)8/12/26, 3:12โฏPMSession III
In search for rare events such as the neutrinoless double-beta decay, SNO+ must ensure that every run used for physics analysis is collected with reliable detector conditions. Thus, it is crucial that the SNO+ data passes certain quality checks throughout its data-acquisition chain to produce physics data that can be trusted. While failed run data is excluded from physics analysis, it also...
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Spencer Reyno (Saint Mary's University)8/12/26, 3:24โฏPMSession III
Classical Novae powered by thermonuclear runaway (TNR) can produce various isotopes, including rare, radioactive varieties such as 22Na and 26Al, though predicted abundances vary due to poorly constrained reaction rate uncertainties. Using simulated data, I test these uncertainties through sensitivity studies, isolating impactful reactions whose rates must be constrained experimentally. Thus,...
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Simon Cao (University of Toronto)8/12/26, 3:36โฏPMSession I
In the Super Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (SuperCDMS), we use machine learning algorithms to predict meaningful physical quantities, such as position and energy, from the signals produced by a particle detection event. However, many detectors are broken, resulting in incomplete data. We show that it is still possible to predict physical information about events recorded by a broken detector,...
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Hayden Klassen (TRIUMF; University of Toronto)8/12/26, 5:05โฏPMSession IV
We present an extensible Python-based numerical solver for stiff source-driven reaction-diffusion systems. It is currently being utilized to model the temporal and spatial evolution of liquid-phase Nโ-Hโ-HโO radiolysis systems by considering Fickian diffusion, mass-action kinetics, and radiolytic production. The generalized design of the solver also makes it adaptable for modeling molecular...
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Cameron Flaman (McGill University)8/12/26, 5:18โฏPMSession IV
Cloud chambers were important detectors to make visible, and in some cases discover, some of the most fundamental particles. While they have been replaced by more sophisticated detectors, they remain great interactive tools for outreach and educational purposes. We developed a Peltier-cooled cloud chamber to create a tangible and interesting demonstration of fundamental principles of particle...
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Sebastian Blaha8/12/26, 5:31โฏPMSession IV
Everyone from children to career physicists are fascinated by black holes. To the average person, it may seem like you need a vast amount of knowledge to understand what a black hole is, however, high school students already have more than the necessary tools to begin learning about them. In my talk I will discuss how I bring aerospace and black holes into the everyday high school class room...
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Nicole Muchos (Queen's University)8/12/26, 5:44โฏPMSession IV
Thisย projectย examines whether the Milky Way is representative of galaxiesย ofย similar massย byย analyzing dataย from the NIHAO cosmological simulation suite.ย By comparingย theย stellar and gas properties, stellar ages, andย metallicitiesย ofย simulatedย galaxiesย with observationsย of the Milky Way,ย we canย betterย understand whereย our Galaxyย fits within theย broader galactic population. Additionally, this...
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Sara Bergevin (Queen's University)8/12/26, 5:57โฏPMSession IV
Using pre-existing optical calibration data, properties of the SNO+ detector can be determined, specifically the refractive index of the scintillator target, the occupancy of the PMT's and position reconstructions based on time of flight. This can be done to further validate pre-existing models for the detector.
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Guneev Dhillon (SNOLAB)8/12/26, 6:10โฏPMSession IV
Super Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (SuperCDMS) SNOLAB is an experiment focused on searching for sub-10 GeV/c$^2$ dark-matter particles. The experiment utilizes two detector types. iZIP (interleaved Z-sensitive Ionization and Phonon) detectors have both ionization and phonon readout channels, providing excellent nuclear-recoil/electron-recoil discrimination. HV (High-Voltage) detectors apply a...
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Isabella Botelho (Queen's University)8/12/26, 6:23โฏPMSession IV
The dynamical state of the Milky Way's stellar disk can be represented by a phase space distribution function (DF), which gives the density of stars in terms of position and velocity. Using the DF, the gravitational potential can be estimated, and subsequently the dark matter content. I will describe a machine learning algorithm based on mixture models to determine the DF and gravitational...
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Matt Poser (Queen's University)8/12/26, 6:36โฏPMSession IV
DEAP3600 is an experiment probing for Weakly Interacting Massive Particle dark matter candidates, using a liquid argon active target and scintillation light from particles interacting in the detector. Simulation of the DEAP detector is used extensively for verification and recreation of empirical data, and high energy events are computationally expensive to simulate on a reasonable timeframe....
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Osanna Wong (SNOLAB)8/13/26, 8:15โฏAMSession V
With the goal of searching for neutrinoless double beta decay in 130Te, the fundamentals of SNO+ and its success is built on chemistry. Notably, the removal of radiation-emitting impurities from chemicals to be deployed into the detector is vital for capturing quiet signals given off by the decay. Quality assurance through analytical chemistry allows us to keep track of progress made towards...
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Brianna Binoy (University of Toronto)8/13/26, 8:28โฏAMSession V
Detecting particles that interact only weakly with matter, such as dark matter, and studying materials under the absence of cosmic background radiation require extremely low-noise environments. SNOLAB achieves this byโฏoperatingโฏ2 km underground, providing one of the worldโs deepest laboratories for studying rare-event phenomena andโฏsensitiveโฏquantum technologies. However, even at such depths,...
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Connor Stubbs (SNOLAB)8/13/26, 8:41โฏAMSession VI
As the radon assay team attempts to create low background ZnS(Ag) scintillator in-house, a new system to test this scintillator is needed. Through work on calibration sources and analysis of photomultiplier tube responses, a system of determining background counts and light yield relative to commercial scintillator has been developed.
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Ella Jackson (SMU)8/13/26, 8:54โฏAMSession V
Core-collapse supernovae early in the Galactic history are sites for heavy element formation, enriching the oldest observable stars in the Galaxy. High-resolution spectroscopic observations have revealed a subset of old stars that exhibit enhanced abundances of elements between strontium and silver (Z=38-47) that cannot be explained solely by currently accepted models. This work aims to...
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Kai Turchan (SNOLAB)8/13/26, 9:07โฏAMSession V
I will be discussing what projects I've worked on as a millwright student for the Technical Services Department at SNOLAB.
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Katie Fosten (SNOLAB)8/13/26, 9:20โฏAMSession V
Comparing seismic events with burst data from the HALO detector with the hypothesis that the shaking from earthquakes can cause machine errors.
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Interpreting seismic data from multiple sources and comparing the effects of the severity on the detector. -
Lily Moss (Queen's University)8/13/26, 9:33โฏAMSession V
The High Energy Light Isotope eXperiment (HELIX) is a balloon-borne experiment which studies cosmic ray propagation through precision isotope measurement. One of the sub-detectors is the Ring Imaging CHerenkov (RICH) detector, which is used to measure the velocity of incoming particles. The RICH has a radiator plane made of aerogel tiles, followed by the focal plane which detects the Cherenkov...
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Gavin Croft (Queen's University)8/13/26, 9:46โฏAMSession V
The motivation for this project is to develop silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) detectors to be used in an upper year physics laboratory course at Queen's University. The SiPM detector was chosen for it's compact size, sensitivity and low bias voltage. My work focused on how to characterize a SiPM and analyzing experimental data from inorganic scintillating crystals using the DRS4 readout system.
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Ahmed Abdel-Dayem8/13/26, 9:59โฏAMSession V
This project presents the modernization of the Fraser Duncan Auditorium control system at SNOLAB through the integration of a Biamp digital signal processor, Microsoft Teams Rooms, camera systems, and a custom Impera Tango control interface. Operational challenges with the legacy system were used to guide iterative improvements to audio routing, room configuration, automation, and operator...
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Celena Guo8/13/26, 10:12โฏAMSession VI
Accurate characterization of electron-hole pair production probabilities is essential for reconstructing energy depositions in silicon at the eV scale, enabling next-generation rare-event searches such as the XLZD dark matter experiment. This work extends previous quantum yield measurements to higher vacuum ultraviolet photon energies (up to 10 eV) and introduces a more robust computational...
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Samantha Ryan (Memorial University)8/13/26, 10:45โฏAMSession VI
Studies have shown students struggle with the high school physics curriculum and its outdated content. Changing high school physics curriculum to include astroparticle topics such as dark matter and energy can increase student interest in STEM careers and futures, as well as improving their critical and logical thinking skills.
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Luka Radulovic (Saint Mary's University)8/13/26, 10:58โฏAMSession VI
The 13N(ฮฑ,p)16O reaction significantly influences the production of several radioactive isotopes (e.g. 56Ni, 44Ti and other iron group isotopes) during core-collapse supernovae, but substantial uncertainties remain in its reaction rate at astrophysically relevant temperatures. To address this, experimental data were collected using the CRIB facility at RIKEN over a broad range of...
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Martin Courchesne (SNOLAB)8/13/26, 11:11โฏAMSession VI
- Reviewed engineering documentations such as P&ID's and operating procedures
- Operated the stripping process for the scintillator plant (monitored process data: mass flow rates, temperatures, and tank levels)
- Participated in quality assurance (turbidity meter, UV-Vis, density meter...)
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Kayla Payne (Queen's University)8/13/26, 11:24โฏAMSession VI
In order for gas clouds in the early universe to undergo direct collapse, cooling via H2 must be suppressed. We are exploring the effect of the Hawking radiation from small PBHs by computing the expected photon spectrum from black hole evaporation and its effect on supporting H2 suppression in a surrounding gas cloud. Our goal is to determine the density and mass distribution of PBHs needed to...
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Julia Gorovitz (SNOLAB)8/13/26, 11:37โฏAMSession VI
During this critical period of fine tuning and maintenance for the detector, the SNO+ group has been working towards multiple important hardware goals. Among them cleaning and analyzing residue in all the 200+ motherboards that connect to the 9000+ PMTs in the detector, and the development from scratch of an IR camera webpage connected to a Raspberry Pi IR Camera and 940nm LEDs, allowing users...
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Hussein David (University of Toronto), Rhea Zhu (University of Toronto)8/13/26, 11:50โฏAMSession VI
The Super Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (SuperCDMS) directly searches for dark matter as Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs). Recently, the development of gram-scale high-voltage detectors has allowed for baseline resolutions on the magnitude of single electron-hole pairs, extending sensitivities to lower masses. We give an overview of such HveV (high voltage electron-volt)...
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Justine Thebault-Weiser (McGill University)8/13/26, 12:03โฏPMSession VI
The Brunner group at McGill University has developed a laser ablation ion source in ultra-high vacuum followed by a mass filter, and is exploring the feasibility of using these to load radioactive Be-7 ions onto quantum sensors for use in the BeEST experiment. This work aims to expand the existing mass range of the setup to demonstrate that the instrument can be used to ablate, filter, and...
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Andrew Gault (NEWS-G)8/13/26, 12:16โฏPMSession IV
NEWS-Gโs digital systems for accessing mission critical information have been outdated, making accessing information like experiment run data from the serverโs database difficult. I have dedicated my time to rebuild these systems from the ground up with modern tools and practices. In addition, I have built the infrastructure for and am running several simulations with COMSOL Multiphysics...
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Diba Toyserkani (SNOLAB)8/13/26, 2:30โฏPMSession VII
The RadioActive isotope Measurement Program at SNOLAB (RAMPS) aims to make the first direct measurement of the excited-state electron-capture decay of ยนโทโถLu, a theoretically predicted but experimentally unobserved transition. The experiment will be performed by a triple-coincidence system of two HPGe detectors and a SiPM-coupled scintillator. This talk presents the GEANT4 Monte Carlo...
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Sahara Majeed (University of British Columbia)8/13/26, 2:43โฏPMSession VII
The ALPHA experiment at CERN traps antihydrogen atoms and performs precision measurements to explore matter-antimatter symmetry. The 1s-2s transition in antihydrogen is one of the most highly sensitive measurements to CPT invariance; in ALPHA-3, its precision is limited by the motion of the trapped atoms. This presentation discusses the role of Lymanโฮฑ laser cooling in ALPHA-3, with the goal...
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Tayler East (Queen's University)8/13/26, 2:55โฏPMSession VI
Theย IceCubeย Neutrinoย Observatory is aย cubic-kilometerย neutrino telescopeย designedย toย detectย high-energy neutrinosย usingย Cherenkov radiation of secondary charged particles inย Antarcticย ice.ย IceCubeย was completed inย 2010ย andย hasย been collecting dataย forย the past decade and a half.ย Over this period,ย IceCubeย hasย observedย a decrease in the background count rates of its optical modules.ย This...
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Riley Breen (NEWS-G)8/13/26, 3:07โฏPMSession VII
Accurate quenching factor measurements are important for interpreting data from dark matter experiments. This summer, I contributed to hardware calibration and preliminary data analysis in preparation for a neutron scattering campaign with NEWS-G at the University of Montreal, where a low-energy neutron beam will be used to measure the detectors response to nuclear recoils.
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Alex Semeraro (McGill)8/13/26, 3:19โฏPMSession VII
Direct detection of dark matter represents a central unsolved problem, eluding physicists for decades. Recent advancements in the field of optomechanics have proven to be relevant in the search for ultralight dark matter, specifically dark matter in the mass ranges of 10ยญ-15 eV โ 10-9 eV. One such advancement is the concept of a superfluid helium acoustic dark matter sensor (HeLIOS), which is...
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Ella Hammet (MI)8/13/26, 3:31โฏPMSession VII
We are expanding on the photometry of Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache point (MaNGA) survey using the AutoProf photometric pipeline to derive structural properties such as sizes, stellar masses and brightness for 6000 systems, bringing the total to ~10,000 galaxy. These measurements will be used to identify Milky Way-analog galaxies within the expanded sample based on their structural and...
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Alexandra Butler (Queen's University)8/13/26, 3:43โฏPMSession VII
This presentation concerns the women who researched, taught and studied physics at Queenโs during the mid-twentieth century. The project considers the contributions of professors and students alike, but particularly emphasises the work of Allie Vibert Douglas, a leading Canadian physicist who helped foster the study of physics at Queenโs during the tumultuous mid-twentieth century. Douglasโs...
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Cheyanne Monk (Carleton University)8/13/26, 3:55โฏPMSession VII
Low-temperature experiments are sensitive to environmental instability, high backgrounds, and electronic detector/signal noise. It is necessary to implement several strategies to mitigate these issues to achieve high sensitivity measurements through careful optimization of environmental monitoring, shielding, hardware considerations, and background simulations. Implementing these strategies at...
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