phd thesis cern

CERN Accelerating science

• Submit your thesis

CERN Library collects theses related to all CERN activities. The Theses collection is made up of some 10,000, mainly PhD, theses.

Submit your thesis to the CERN Document Server (CDS)

By submitting your thesis, it will become easy accessible for all members of the community. CDS offers augmented accessibility to the information compared to thesis only stored at university servers.

The Operational Circular no. 6 requires every CERN Author to submit a copy of their scientific documents, theses included, to CDS.

Who should submit their thesis?

• Students paid by CERN (CERN Doctoral Student Program)
• Students having used CERN equipment
• Students advised by CERN staff

Old or new undergraduate and graduate (Diploma, Bachelor, Master, PhD, etc) theses are accepted.

Examples of theses to be submitted to CDS :

• Theses processing ATLAS data or ATLAS code
• Theses related to beamtime or beam optics in the SPS north area
• Theses evaluating any workflows or processes at CERN (not necessarily related to physics, engineering or IT)

> How to submit

• Theses written by the CERN Doctoral Students can also be seen in the sub-collection CERN Doctoral Student Program Theses
• Use the: Thesis submission form

] Good to know

• You can only submit if you have an active CERN user account.
• The CERN department where you had written your thesis
• If your thesis was funded by a CERN programme (Administrative Student, Technical Student, Doctoral Student)
• If your thesis is related to a CERN experiment
• In case of corrections or a revised version, please do not make a new submission but send the new PDF or the corrections to: @email
• Submit & Publish
• How and where to submit your document/data

CERN Accelerating science

ALICE congratulates its PhD thesis award winner

2 July, 2021

Once a year, the ALICE collaboration awards a prize to the best PhD thesis based on the excellence of the results obtained, the quality of the thesis manuscript and the importance of the contribution to the collaboration.

The quality of all of the theses examined by the selection board in 2021 was excellent, but the committee unanimously decided to honour Jonatan Adolfsson, from Lund University, for his thesis work “Study of Ξ-Hadron Correlations in pp Collisions at √s = 13 TeV Using the ALICE Detector”. The prize was awarded in a dedicated session of the ALICE Week, on Monday, 28 June. Jonatan was congratulated by ALICE Spokesperson Luciano Musa, who presented the award, Collaboration Board Chair Silvia Masciocchi and the Chairs of the Thesis Committee, Giuseppe Bruno and Philippe Crochet. Jonatan then gave a flash presentation on his thesis.

Through the work for his thesis, Jonatan contributed to the first measurements of anisotropic flow coefficients in Xe–Xe collisions at √s NN = 5.44 TeV using the method of multi-particle cumulants ( Phys. Lett. B784 (2018) 82 ). His work focused on the mechanisms behind the strangeness enhancement, one of the historical signatures of the quark–gluon plasma. Jonatan developed a new strategy for studying the angular correlation between the Ξ hyperon and a variety of hadrons: pions, kaons, protons, lambda and the Ξ itself. In addition, he was responsible for important tests of the SAMPA electronics readout chips, used for the ALICE TPC and Muon Chamber upgrades for the LHC’s Run 3 and beyond.

You can read Jonatan’s thesis here .

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CERN Accelerating science

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Doctoral student programme projects.

CERN typically selects around 40-50 doctoral students at each selection committee. Please note most of the projects are not published in advance. 

The table below will be updated as HR receives new projects from supervisors.

The table below shows examples of projects that may be considered for the next Doctoral student selection round.

If you would be interested in working on any of these example projects, please state this in the "Note to hiring manager" text field when completing your application.

Please note that this is not mandatory and your application will be considered even if you have not stated a specific project. CERN cannot guarantee that successful applicants will be able to work on their requested projects.

Please note the upcoming selection committee will be taking place in February 2024.

PhD thesis at CERN

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CERN - Austrian Doctoral Student Program

Each year, the Austrian Federal Ministry of Science and Research supports several new austrian doctoral students working and studying at CERN.

If you want to know more:  CERN Website

CERN Technical und Doctoral Student Programm

The  CERN Doctoral Student Program  offers students from all CERN member states (including Austria) to apply for a PhD thesis, while the  CERN Technical Student Program  is targeted for undergraduate students. See the corresponding CERN website and the following video for more information:

Doctoral Student Programme

Technical Student Programm

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CERN Accelerating science

CMS Ph.D. Thesis Award winners 2022

https://cms.cern/news/cms-phd-thesis-award-winners-2022

Congratulations to Angira Rastogi, Willem Verbeke, and David Walter who won the 2022 CMS Ph.D. Thesis Award!

The CMS Collaboration recognizes annually the outstanding achievements of young scientists through this award and highlights the exceptional contributions made by doctoral researchers in advancing the field of high-energy physics.

The 32 nominees for this award had to defend their theses between November 1st, 2021 and October 31st, 2022. Theses covering various aspects of CMS-related work, including physics analysis, simulation, computing, detector development, and engineering, were eligible for nomination. Then the CMS Thesis Award Committee, consisting of 30 scientists, evaluated the theses based on their content, originality, and the clarity of writing.

«The award-winning theses are exemplary in that they provide models of high-quality scientific and technological research and writing for new students engaging in research with CMS. At the same time, they are a lasting value for all CMS collaborators, as they provide accessible but in-depth documentation of a diversified set of CMS-related research methods (physics analysis, simulation, computing, detector development, engineering, etc.) throughout the lifetime of the experiment.» - Marta Felcini, chair of the CMS PhD Thesis Award Committee.

The winners of the CMS Ph.D. Thesis Award receive a Thesis Award Certificate, a Gift Voucher and travel expenses coverage so they can present their thesis results at an international conference, They are also given the opportunity to present their thesis work during a plenary session of CMS Week, and they are provided with a CMS Endorsement for Publication in Springer Theses. 

Time to learn more about the three winners and their exceptional theses!

Angira Rastogi

In my thesis , I have tried to address many open questions of the Standard Model (SM) of Particle Physics, by finding signatures of new physics scenarios through their coupling to leptons. Leptons have a very clear and distinct footprint in the CMS detector, which facilitates probing these new theories at higher precision in great depths, from very high particle masses to very low couplings. I have particularly focused on designing an inclusive multi lepton analysis for beyond-the-SM (BSM) searches, which puts the tau leptons also on an equal footing with the lighter flavors. Tau leptons undergo weak decays due to finite lifetime, and can decay to hadrons in addition to the leptons. So, this makes the background estimation as well as signal selection a very challenging task. But, I made use of the novel machine learning techniques to look at a brand new portal of BSM physics scenarios producing tau leptons in the final state, for the first time by LHC experiments, such as the vector-like tau leptons.

When the CMS Pixel tracker was upgraded in 2017 to improve the overall track reconstruction and also extend the tracking volume of charged particles in the forward region, I implemented the new geometry in the fast simulation framework of the CMS. I then modified the track reconstruction algorithm to benefit from the enhanced geometry which enabled the collaboration to produce a larger grid of BSM physics simulation in a faster way, with less consumption of computing resources, yet not compromising on the physics aspect.

For now, I have switched gears to the high-luminosity LHC (HL-LHC) ATLAS detector upgrades, focusing on the data acquisition from the silicon pixel modules via the means of optical communication. I hope to apply my expertise on the tau leptons very soon in the ATLAS experiment as well, broadening the paradigm of new physics searches."

Willem Verbeke

My thesis describes several searches for physics processes that were undiscovered at the time of writing. The searches target diverse physics, but are experimentally closely related in the sense that they all use LHC collisions that result in multiple charged leptons. Charged leptons give extraordinarily clean experimental signals, therefore being an ideal probe in many particle physics analyses.

The earliest result described in the thesis is the first search for sterile neutrinos at the LHC that targets collision events with three leptons. It allowed us to search for these elusive particles in previously uncharted parameter space.

Second is a search for single top quark production in association with a Z boson (tZq), an extremely rare SM process with an extraordinary sensitivity to new physics. Being about 50 times more rare than Higgs boson production in the current LHC collisions, tZq production remained undiscovered prior to the work presented in my thesis. The use of a machine learning based lepton identification algorithm and a total redesign of the analysis strategy compared to earlier results allowed for the first unambiguous discovery of tZq production.

Lastly, a search for Supersymmetry, one of the most popular extensions of the standard model, is presented. In this search parametric neural networks are used to separate signal and background events. Such neural networks are able to search for particles with several unknown properties, vastly increasing the reach of the presented search over earlier results. This is the first time parametric neural networks are used in such a search, opening the door for improved searches for all kinds of undiscovered physics in the future.

David Walter

In my work I studied a process that is considered rare and was observed only in 2018. The simultaneous production of a top quark and a Z boson, the top quark is the heaviest known fundamental particle, while the Z boson is the third heaviest. In first approximation, the process has only electroweak interactions and offers unique features, such as sensitivity to the very small b quark content in the proton, the coupling of the top quark to the b quark via the W boson, and at the same time the coupling of the top quark to the Z boson. For the first time I made differential measurements of the process and studied its properties, for example related to the top quark spin. I compared my results with different theory predictions. I also obtained the most precise determination for the production probability of this process.

In a second project, I developed a new method using Z bosons to measure the luminosity, which is an essential input to every analysis in CMS. For the first time I made a complete uncertainty assessment of this alternative approach. It shows competitive results and the unique features could help reduce the luminosity uncertainty in the future. In particular for the upcoming HL-LHC which has more challenging data-taking conditions.

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CERN employment and training opportunities

Cern doctoral student programme.

CERN offers placements for postgraduate students to study towards a doctorate in a technical field for member states. The placement gives you the chance to work on your thesis while spending six to 36 months at the forefront of science. The programme is open to students from a range of specialisations from engineering, material science, mathematics and applied physics. Particle physics students are not eligible for this scheme.

You can find out more on the  CERN recruitment website .

Read STFC’s tips and guidance for applying to CERN’s undergraduate and graduate programmes.

Lorraine Bobb is coming to the end of her PhD with RHUL in collaboration with the John Adams Institute (JAI), CERN and Cornell University. She has been developing a non-invasive, micron scale, transverse beam size monitor. The prototype that she has designed aims to measure the vertical size of the main beam to within one micron.

Existing techniques used at other particle accelerators including the LHC are typically based on measurements taken when the beam passes through a thin screen or wire. The problem with these methods is that the interaction of the beam with the screen or wire can damage the integrity of the beam. For the high luminosities that CLIC aims to achieve, the charge density and high energy of the beam would simply destroy the beam measurement instrumentation and therefore a non-invasive technique is required.

“A non-invasive technique (the laser wire scanner) already exists,” explains Lorraine, “but it’s expensive and technically quite demanding. CLIC needs a cheaper and easier solution.”

Lorraine, with the help of her research group, designed the new instrument, chose the materials that would be used to make it and oversaw the manufacture of the prototype. “Finding a company capable of meeting the precision machining tolerances was a challenge; the instrument, which uses a target like a tuning fork, has two prongs that must have a coplanarity (or flatness) to within tens of nanometres [a human hair is approximately 100,000 nm wide].”

Lorraine installed her prototype at CesrTA, the test accelerator at Cornell University and as she approaches the end of her PhD, she is now analysing the data.

“Early indications suggest that there is a lot of background noise caused by synchrotron radiation when observing shorter wavelengths, and that possibly the instrument needs to be positioned differently to minimise this background. But the project has enabled me to develop a new process for the practicalities of measuring beams non-invasively – getting the beam through the 1mm target aperture on a circular machine, without it hitting the sides, was a challenge.”

Last updated: 30 June 2022

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CERN Accelerating science

ALICE congratulates its PhD thesis award winners

4 August, 2022

On 28 July, the ALICE collaboration awarded the annual prizes for the best PhD theses at a ceremony held in the CERN Main Auditorium as part of the ALICE Physics Week. Since 2008, the collaboration has recognised the most outstanding PhD theses in the field of physics and instrumentation based on the excellence of the results obtained, the quality of the thesis manuscript and the importance of the contribution to the collaboration.

After reviewing all the theses submitted for the award, the ALICE Thesis Awards Committee selected five winners: Shreyasi Acharya  (Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre, HBNI, Kolkata, India), Mattia Faggin  (University of and INFN, Padova, Italy), Dimitar Mihaylov  (Technische Universität München, Germany), Jasper Parkkila  (University of Jyväskylä, Finland) and Mike Sas  (Utrecht University, Netherlands).

The winners gave flash talks on their thesis work and received prizes and mementos from the ALICE Deputy Spokesperson, Barbara Erazmus, with congratulations from the Chair of the Collaboration Board, Marielle Chartier, and the Chairs of the selection committee, Giuseppe Bruno and Philippe Crochet.

The winning theses are:

• Multiparticle production in proton–proton collisions at the LHC energies by Shreyasi Acharya 
• Measurement of heavy-flavour decay electrons and heavy-flavour baryon production with ALICE experiment at LHC by Mattia Faggin
• Analysis techniques for femtoscopy and correlation studies in small collision systems and their applications to the investigation of p–Λ and Λ–Λ interactions with ALICE by Dimitar Mihaylov 
• Quantifying the transport properties of quark–gluon plasma through measurement of higher harmonic flow and their non-linear response by Jasper Parkkila 
• Illuminating Light by Mike Sas.

More on the ALICE collaboration’s website .

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CERN Accelerating science

ATLAS congratulates its 2023 Thesis Awards winners

26 February, 2024

By Katarina Anthony

From left to right: ATLAS collaboration Board Chair Maria Jose Costa; ATLAS Thesis Awards Committee Chair Antonella De Santo; ATLAS Thesis Award winners Nicole Hartman, Joshua Beirer, Savannah Clawson, Hassnae El Jarrari and Xiao Yang; and ATLAS Spokesperson Andreas Hoecker. Not pictured: ATLAS Thesis Award winners Samuel Van Stroud and Prajita Bhattarai. (Image: K. Anthony/CERN)

The ATLAS collaboration celebrated the achievements of its exceptional PhD students at the recent Thesis Awards ceremony. Established in 2010, the ATLAS Thesis Awards recognise the remarkable contributions made by students to the ATLAS collaboration through their doctoral theses. Students play pivotal roles in the collaboration while gaining invaluable skills crucial to their professional pursuits.

The 2023 ATLAS Thesis Awards were announced on 15 February 2024 at a ceremony held at CERN's main auditorium. The award winners are: Joshua Beirer from CERN & Georg-August-Universität Göttingen (Germany), Prajita Bhattarai from Brandeis University (USA), Savannah Clawson from the University of Manchester (UK), Hassnae El Jarrari from Université Mohammed-V De Rabat (Morocco), Nicole Hartman from Stanford University & SLAC (USA), Samuel Van Stroud from University College London (UK), and Xiao Yang from the University of Science and Technology of China (China).

“PhD students aren’t just the beating heart of the ATLAS collaboration – they’re the brains behind many of our achievements,” said Antonella De Santo, Chair of the Thesis Awards Committee. “PhD students make up a significant fraction of ATLAS collaboration members and contribute to a diverse range of research areas, including physics analysis, detector operations and upgrades, and software and hardware developments. The ATLAS Thesis Awards are our way of recognizing and highlighting their outstanding achievements.”

____________

Read the full story and explore the winning theses on the ATLAS website .

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CERN Accelerating science

Cern non-member state phd studentship scheme.

The non-Member State (NMS) PhD Studentship Scheme provides young, high-calibre PhD students with the opportunity to participate in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) experiments, in addition to other scientific and technological activities in the CERN programme. The scheme offers students in particle physics, applied physics, information technology (IT), computing and engineering from NMS a unique chance to deepen their knowledge in a truly unique organisation. They will get involved in world-famous experiments and accelerator projects of unprecedented scale and scope and will bring new skills and a range of expertise back to their home countries and regions.

How it started:

The original programme, the “ATLAS PhD Grant Scheme”, was founded in 2014 by Fabiola Gianotti and Peter Jenni, former ATLAS spokespersons, who donated the Fundamental Physics Special Breakthrough Prize awarded for their leading role in the discovery of the Higgs boson. Now, after many successful years, and thanks to the pilot scheme for doctoral studentships for students from CERN NMS, the programme has evolved into this new initiative.

The Studentship Scheme:

Selected candidates receive a studentship to work towards a PhD thesis while spending up to two years at CERN, at the forefront of science, over the full period of their PhD studies.

Our objectives:

•  Provide opportunities for young, high-calibre PhD students in particle physics, applied physics, IT, computing and engineering to obtain world-class exposure, supervision and training in CERN experiments and accelerator projects.
• Deliver on CERN’s capacity-building target by providing training in the fields of particle physics and related areas.
• Give students the chance to bring new skills and a range of expertise back to their home countries and regions.
• Boost participation in the LHC/High-Luminosity LHC and future major projects at CERN.
• Give students in countries with limited exposure to CERN the chance to become CERN ambassadors.

Eligibility and qualifications:

All NMS nationalities are eligible to apply to the NMS PhD Studentship Scheme; you can find the list here .

Since diversity and inclusion are an integral part of CERN’s mission and are established values of the Organization, priority will be given to students studying in developing countries or regions and to those studying in countries and regions with developing particle physics communities.

To qualify for a place, PhD students will need to meet the following requirements:

• Be enrolled in university and have completed at least one year of PhD studies.
• Have already have agreed on their thesis subject with their home university or are looking for one.
• Have a good knowledge of English and/or French.

Responsibility for full PhD supervision and awarding of the degree lies with the home university; daily co-supervision while at CERN is by a CERN staff member.

Application period:

Please note that the application period has expired on 30 August 2023 CEST .

The programme for PhD students from non-Member states is only possible thanks to generous donations from individuals, companies and foundations.

Support the scientists of tomorrow by making a donation now!