Tevatron brings Higgs particle one step closer

On June 4 we reported on the Higgs search by CDF and DZero at Fermilab, aided by processing power from the Open Science Grid. This hot topic in particle physics is getting hotter. Here we give an update.

Scientists from the CDF and DZero collaborations at the Tevatron at Fermilab presented results which for the first time exclude, with 95% probability, a mass for the Higgs of 170 GeV/c². This value lies near the middle of the possible mass range for the particle established by earlier experiments.

Combining results from the two collider experiments effectively doubles the data available for analysis by experimenters and allows each experimental group to cross check and confirm the other’s results. The Open Science Grid continues to be instrumental in enabling this analysis. In the near future, the Fermilab experimenters expect to test more and more of the available mass range for the Higgs.

Feature - Interview

People behind the LHC: Mariusz Sapinski

Mariusz Sapinski is part of the Accelerators and Beams Department for the Large Hadron Collider, where he models what happens inside a supercooled magnet hit by high-energy protons. “It has the potential to be a very violent process, leading to magnet destruction,” he said, “and requires a lot of computing power to simulate—and prevent.”

Feature - Software update

Open Science Grid 1.0: Stable, secure, reliable

Open Science Grid 1.0 is here. Although scientists have been generating results on OSG resources for a couple of years using earlier versions, the VDT-based software has now reached a confident “1.0” level of stability, security and reliability.

“OSG 1.0 is an evolutionary, as opposed to revolutionary improvement over the previous software release,” says Alain Roy (pictured), software coordinator for OSG.

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