A new subatomic particle has been discovered at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC), known as the Ξcc⁺ (Xi‑cc‑plus), which could help scientists improve their understanding of the forces that hold matter together.
The result is the first particle discovery made using the upgraded LHCb detector, a major international project involving more than 1,000 scientists across 20 countries. The LHCb group from the University of Manchester designed and built key components of the upgraded tracking system, including the silicon pixel detector modules that were assembled in the university’s Schuster Building. The detectors were central to precisely reconstructing the particle decays in which the Ξcc⁺ signal was observed.
The detector is a form of camera that images the particles produced at the LHC and takes photographs 40 million times per second. It utilises a custom designed silicon chip that also has a variant that is used in medical imaging applications.
The particle itself is a heavier version...