Diego Lopez Gutierrez, a McDonnell Center Graduate Fellow in the Department of Physics at Washington University in St. Louis, has been selected for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) program
The SCGSR program is a nationally competitive award that supports outstanding PhD students conducting part of their thesis research at DOE national laboratories. The program provides graduate students with access to the expertise, facilities, and resources available at the national laboratories to advance their doctoral research.
Lopez Gutierrez will spend four months, from August through December, at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, where he will work with Pedro Machado, a staff scientist and leading expert in neutrino theory.
His project focuses on the tau neutrino, the least studied particle in the Standard Model of particle physics. Despite being one of the fundamental particles that make up the universe, the tau neutrino has only been observed in about 20 events. Because so little is known about it, the tau neutrino may offer important clues about physics beyond the Standard Model.
To better understand the tau neutrino’s properties and place tighter constraints on theories of new physics, scientists first need accurate predictions of whether and how many tau neutrinos should be produced and detected in experiments. During his time at Fermilab, Lopez Gutierrez will investigate possible anomalous sources of tau neutrinos that could appear in accelerator neutrino experiments.
“Fermilab is the world capital of neutrino physics so I am excited not only to learn from Pedro and the rest of the theory department but also to work and connect with the scientists and engineers working on the experiments upon which my projects will be based on,” he said.
In addition to the research opportunity, Lopez Gutierrez is looking forward to spending several months in the Chicago area and enjoying all the city has to offer.
The SCGSR program supports graduate students pursuing research in areas aligned with the DOE Office of Science mission and is designed to strengthen collaborations between graduate students and DOE national laboratories, giving awardees the opportunity to work alongside leading scientists and use world-class research facilities to advance their dissertation projects. Awardees are selected through a merit-based review process.
Lopez Gutierrez’s selection recognizes both the significance of his research and the promise of his contributions to our understanding of one of the most elusive particles in nature.
