The SAPHIR Millennium Institute has taken a new strategic step by formalizing a collaboration addendum with CERN, specifically in the framework of the SHiP (Search for Hidden Particles) experiment, one of the European laboratory's most promising projects in its search for invisible particles and phenomena beyond the Standard Model of physics.
This agreement not only ratifies SAPHIR's participation in SHiP, but also expands its technical responsibilities, establishing the presence of a Chilean expert at the CERN site who will work directly with the Experimental Physics (EP) Department. His tasks include the study of the detection systems designed for background noise suppression, the contribution to the mechanical design of these systems and the leadership in the operation of the SND@LHC experiment until the closure of Run 3.
"This is a high-level collaboration, which not only positions SAPHIR and Chile as active players in the technological and scientific development of the SHiP experiment, but also promotes the training and specialization of young researchers in particle physics and associated technologies", emphasizes Sergey Kuleshov, director of the SAPHIR Institute, who is the technical coordinator for Chile.The project, which not only positions SAPHIR and Chile as active players in the technological and scientific development of the SHiP experiment, but also promotes the training and specialization of young researchers in particle physics and associated technologies," said Sergey Kuleshov, director of SAPHIR, who is the Chilean technical coordinator of the project.
The agreement, valid from August 2025 to August 2026, also includes support in engineering design, the allocation of workspaces, equipment and services by CERN, as well as joint technical supervision by experts from the European laboratory. It should be noted that the Chilean expert will be formally designated as a Project Associate (PJAS), which will facilitate his integration into CERN's activities under its official regulations.
The collaboration also contemplates the active participation in the preparation of technical documentation that can be incorporated in the Technical Design Reports (TDR) of the experiments, thus reaffirming SAPHIR's intellectual and practical contribution to these frontier scientific developments.
This addendum is a reflection of the sustained work that the Millennium Institute SAPHIR has developed in projects such as SND@LHC and SHiP, and represents a milestone for Chilean science, consolidating its presence in one of the most important laboratories in the world. This strengthens not only research in particle physics from the south of the world, but also the projection of national technical and scientific talent in top level international collaborations.
