The Electron-Ion Collider: Probing the Fundamental Structure of Matter and Beyond

by Or Hen (MIT)

Wednesday May 28, 2025, 3:00 PM → 5:00 PM Europe/Berlin

Recently the United States greenlit the construction of a revolutionary Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) at Brookhaven National Laboratory. This once-in-a-generation $3 billion investment is set to propel our understanding of subatomic matter by generating unmatched high-current polarized electron and proton/ion beams, which will interact at two distinct collision points. These interactions will be analyzed by cutting-edge detectors to uncover unprecedented insights into the fundamental formation and properties of matter.

The EIC’s research program is primed to address some of the most profound questions in fundamental physics—including the emergence of nucleon spin and mass, the three-dimensional structure of nucleons and nuclei, and the role of QCD and confinement in nuclear interactions. It will further explore the uncharted territory of saturated gluonic matter and advance our quest to probe for physics beyond the Standard Model in a manner highly complementary to high-energy hadron colliders such as the LHC.

In this talk, I will present how the EIC will serve as an invaluable tool in addressing these questions. I will also present an overview of the ePIC detector, currently under design and construction by an international collaboration of scientists from over 160 institutions, promising to redefine our understanding of the subatomic world and offering opportunities for engagement in this exciting project.