Quasar Group

02/09/2026

Faraday Cup Award for the Beam Gas Curtain collaboration

We are delighted to celebrate the Faraday Cup Award presented at IBIC 2026 to the collaboration behind the pioneering Beam Gas Curtain (BGC) monitor.

Developed over more than 20 years by the QUASAR Group, CERN and GSI, the BGC has grown from an early research concept into an operational instrument at the Large Hadron Collider. Many generations of QUASAR PhD students, postdoctoral researchers and colleagues have contributed to this achievement alongside our partners at CERN and GSI.

The award is a fantastic recognition of the sustained teamwork, expertise and commitment behind this innovative beam-diagnostics technology.

Congratulations to everyone who has been part of this fantastic journey!

01/09/2026

Members of the QUASAR Group took part in a vibrant outreach session at the University of Liverpool’s Victoria Gallery & Museum (VG&M) on 4th August 2026. The free event welcomed school children and families, providing an engaging opportunity to discover the fascinating world of accelerator physics through fun, interactive, hands-on activities.

Read more:
https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/quasar/news/stories/title,1567573,en.php

28/08/2026

Members of the QUASAR Group took part in a vibrant outreach session at the University of Liverpool’s Victoria Gallery & Museum. 💫

The free event welcomed school children and families, providing an engaging opportunity to discover the fascinating world of accelerator physics through fun, interactive, hands-on activities.

Read more on www.quasar-group.org

26/08/2026

A new paper led by Angus Jones and Dr Joseph Wolfenden of the QUASAR Group has just been published in the open-access journal Instruments.

The paper investigates how optical fibre-based beam loss monitors could be used not only to locate beam losses in particle accelerators, but also to estimate the energy of the lost beam particles. This capability could provide valuable additional information for the operation of future accelerator facilities, particularly Energy Recovery LINACs (ERLs).

Find out more:

Cherenkov light visualised in the simulation. A new paper led by Angus Jones and Dr Joseph Wolfenden of the QUASAR Group has just been published in the open-access journal Instruments. The paper, titled Feasibility Study of Beam Loss Energy Estimation with an Optical Fibre-Based Detector, investigat...

29/07/2026

Congratulations to QUASAR Group member Monty King who successfully passed his PhD viva following three years of research into innovative optical fibre-based beam loss monitoring techniques.

A major part of Monty’s research involved the development and characterisation of a novel oBLM installed at CERN’s Linear Electron Accelerator for Research (CLEAR). His work investigated different methods for extracting timing and beam-loss position information from the measured signals, as well as the influence of changing beam conditions on the performance of the system. He also contributed to the development of software allowing beam losses and their reconstructed positions to be visualised in real time.

Find out more:
https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/quasar/news/stories/title,1564996,en.php

27/07/2026

Third and fourth-year LIV.INNO students joined forces with fellows from the EuPRAXIA-DN project for four days of training designed to equip them with essential career skills.

The program followed a successful format previously delivered as part of the LIV.DAT CDT and other European-funded doctoral networks.

This included advanced project management skills, grant application writing, cv writing, LinkedIn strategies and outreach training.

Find out more: https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/quasar/news/stories/title,1564770,en.php

24/07/2026

The University of Liverpool's Department of Physics hosted its Annual Work Experience Week for A-Level students from 29 June – 3 July.

This event, designed for students from Widening Participation partnered schools and the local city region, welcomed 36 students. The students engaged in introductory talks, team challenges and gained work experience in various laboratories for condensed matter, nuclear, and particle physics.

A tour of the Daresbury Laboratory Campus, organized by QUASAR Dr Narender Kumar, concluded the program.

Find out more:
https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/quasar/news/stories/title,1564775,en.php

15/07/2026

Professor Carsten P Welsch, Head of the QUASAR Group, was invited by CERN to contribute to this year’s KIMIKO Festival in Aachen, Germany, as part of the CERN Science Hub at the festival’s Science & Tech program.

Prof Welsch contributed a public talk entitled “Hollywood Physics”, using popular films and series as a starting point to explore what science fiction gets right, what it gets wrong, and where real accelerator science can be even more surprising than the movies. The talk used examples from superhero films and popular culture to introduce audiences to particle accelerators, antimatter, new technologies and the real-world applications of accelerator research.

Find out more:

One of the main music stages at KIMIKO Festival, photo courtesy of Kimiko Festival. Professor Carsten P Welsch, Head of the QUASAR Group, was invited by CERN to contribute to this year’s KIMIKO Festival in Aachen, Germany, as part of the CERN Science Hub at the festival’s Science & Tech program....

13/07/2026

Dr Bifeng Lei from the QUASAR Group participated in the Low Density Materials for Particle Accelerator Applications workshop, held at the University of Bath from 8–9 June 2026.

Dr Lei presented the QUASAR Group’s work on carbon nanotubes for future accelerator applications. His talk highlighted how their density, geometry, conductivity and surface response can be engineered to support new approaches to particle acceleration and radiation generation.

Read more:

QUASAR Group researcher, Dr Bifeng Lei (3rd from the left) at the Low-Density Materials Workshop. (credit: Uni Bath) Dr Bifeng Lei from the QUASAR Group participated in the Low Density Materials for Particle Accelerator Applications workshop, held at the University of Bath from 8–9 June 2026. The ...

08/07/2026

Today, the EuPRAXIA-DN Fellows are taking part in an inspiring training session with Diana Powell, exploring how to design outreach that truly stands out.

The session is all about giving the Fellows the tools, ideas, and confidence they need to create engaging outreach activities in the communities where they work.