Every summer, UDallas undergraduate students travel to Geneva, Switzerland to participate in physics research at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). The project, which could have possible applications in future cancer treatment, is the result of a proposal by Drs. Jacob Moldenhauer and Will Flanagan. UDallas professors and students became collaborators on the Neutron Time-of-Flight Facility (n_TOF) team at CERN in 2023 and have returned each summer to continue their research. Scientists from Spain, Italy, Austria, Germany and England, among other countries, collaborate on these projects and recognize the work of our students.
The only undergraduates on the n_TOF collaboration, UDallas students not only keep up with the scientists and PhD students but also excel in their research as a result of the problem-solving skills and ownership they have learned in their physics classes on campus. “They’re impressed when UDallas students are getting work done that n_TOF scientists would be doing, not what normal undergraduates would be doing,” said Genevieve Alpar, BS ’25, who participated in the research for the past three years.
For the students, participating in summer research at CERN provides valuable experience and the research credit necessary to earn a BS upon graduation. “The work I did at CERN is PhD-level work, not normal undergraduate-level work. We’re getting a much bigger push than students at other universities would have,” explained Alpar.
