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Deep Thoughts
Monday, February 8, 2016
Notes from the underground by Communications Director Constance Walter
CASPAR takes critical step
Photo by Matt Kapust
Principal Investigator of CASPAR Dr. Frank Strieder inspects the CASPAR accelerator column.
R
esearchers with CASPAR (Compact Accelerator System
for Performing Astrophysical Research) began installing
the accelerator last fall. “This is the most sensitive piece
of equipment in the entire CASPAR setup,” said Dr. Frank
Strieder, associate professor of physics at the South Dakota
School of Mines and Technology.
The ion source, the location for particles before acceleration, will be installed on left end of the column. The black
cylindrical-shaped piece on the left acts as a pulley and
charging belt—the system that transports the charge to
the source, creating the high voltage needed. The belt goes
through the rings and the other end is attached to the
steel plate. The equipotential rings ensure a homogeneous
electrical field all along the acceleration range.
“The installation of the accelerator column represents
a critical step in the construction of the CASPAR facility,”
Strieder said. The next steps include mounting the acceleration tube and the ion source. Later, this entire part
of the accelerator will be enclosed in the steel tank and
the tank will be filled with an insulating gas—a mixture of
carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas.
Deep Talks this Thursday: “Exploring the unseen”
If you love a good mystery, you
won’t want to miss the next Deep
Talks: “Exploring the unseen.” The
event, presented with the Sanford
Lab Homestake Visitor Center, is this
Thursday, Feb. 11, at the Visitor Center
in Lead, S.D. A social hour begins at 5
p.m., the talk begins at 6 p.m.
Over the past year, Sanford Lab’s
Education and Outreach team, with
the help of six South Dakota teachers,
developed curriculum units for use
in schools across the state—two each
South Dakota Science and Technology Authority
for grades 3-5, 6-8 and 9-12. The
units focus on the science taking
place nearly a mile underground at
Sanford Lab.
Join E&O Director June Apaza and
other members of the E&O team for an
interactive experience relating to dark
matter and the Large Underground
Xenon (LUX) experiment at the next
Deep Talk presentation, “Exploring
the unseen.”
“Students love a good mystery and
are fascinated by the unexpected,”
Apaza said. “With these curriculum
units, we hope to tap into that fascination.” Apaza is also the director
of the Center for Math and Science
Education at Black Hills State
University.
Deep Talks is free to the public.
Donations to support education events
at the Visitor Center are welcome.
Light refreshments sponsored by
First National Bank will be served;
guests aged 21 and older may sample
craft brews from Crow Peak Brewery.
Lead, South Dakota