The past months have been an exciting time for our group, marked by intense activity, collaboration, and significant contributions from our students to the FCC-ee design effort. The FCC project offers a unique environment for young researchers: it sits at the intersection of detector physics, accelerator physics, simulation tools, and large-scale data processing. Even for those of us who have been in the field for a long time, there is a great deal to learn—especially when working with accelerator parameters or studying an e+e− collider environment, quite different from the hadron machines many of us grew up with. This mix of new challenges and new ideas makes it a particularly exciting time to join the effort.
At the FCC-ee vertex detector R&D Workshop in Pisa, Mariarosaria presented work carried out with Estrella on the design and optimization of several alternative vertex detector layouts. Their study explored different geometries and sensor configurations, aiming to improve tracking precision close to the interaction point—one of the most critical aspects of the FCC-ee detector. [ here the link ]
One part of the workshop in Pisa was also the visit to the impressive labs that the INFN in Pisa has to offer. Here we visited a test stand simulating heat loads and testing various setups of air cooling.
Just one week later, at the 1st TDAQ Workshop at CERN, Jan showcased results from his collaboration with Katie, focusing on realistic simulation of beam-induced backgrounds and beam–beam effects. Their work is essential for understanding the intense radiation and occupancy conditions the detectors will face, and it directly informs both detector layout choices and data acquisition strategies. [ here the meeting agenda ]
Overall, the summer period has been exceptionally productive. Our students have delivered tangible, high-level results that are now feeding directly into the broader FCC design studies, helping shape the next steps of the experiment.
Finally, the Pisa retreat proved to be an excellent opportunity to strengthen collaboration among the various groups involved. The atmosphere was dynamic and constructive, and we agreed to continue this momentum by meeting every six months to exchange progress and coordinate future work.