QMUL Centre for Theoretical Physics and Astronomy News

Queen Mary theoretical physicists awarded £1. ...

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 23:00:00 +0100

Researchers in the Centre for Theoretical Physics and Astronomy in the School of Physical and Chemical Sciences and the Centre for Geometry, Analysis and Gravitation in the School of Mathematical Sciences at Queen Mary have been awarded £1.4 million from the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) to fund the four-year research programme titled "Amplitudes, Strings and Duality". The panel noted that "The QMUL group has been a powerhouse of research in theoretical particle physics". This award reflects QMUL's position as one of the largest and most active theoretical physics groups in the UK, building on an exceptional research record spanning string theory, scattering amplitudes, and dualities. This major award will support a broad and ambitious programme of research at the interface of theoretical physics, mathematics, and emerging computational methods involving 16 academics and three postdoctoral researchers and is focused on two interconnected themes: Amplitudes and Quantum Fields: QMUL has been at the forefront of modern amplitudes research, uncovering deep mathematical structures in quantum field theory, gravity, and string theory. The team has developed powerful methods to compute classical observables in general relativity relevant to gravitational waves, including landmark results using heavy-mass effective field theory and worldline approaches. Breakthroughs include the computation of gravitational waveforms and high-order scattering observables, as well as major advances in the double copy, amplituhedron, and string amplitudes. The new programme will push the precision frontier in gravitational physics, deepen connections between complementary computational methods, and extend the reach of the double copy to new physical settings including cosmology and condensed matter. It will also explore links between quantum information theory and collider physics. Symmetries and Quantum Fields: Dualities, Algebras and Learning: The team has led advances across holography, quantum field theory, and mathematical physics, uncovering new structures in black hole physics, conformal field theories, and topological field theories. Their work spans topics such as quantum anomalies, non-perturbative dynamics, and emergent geometry, alongside innovative applications of machine learning to quantum field theory and the bootstrap programme. Future work will investigate the interplay between holography and quantum complexity, develop new algebraic and computational frameworks for understanding quantum field theories, and explore the role of artificial intelligence both as a tool for discovery in physics and as a subject informed by physical principles. This grant will strengthen collaboration across SPCS and SMS at QMUL, support early-career researchers and students, and enable continued leadership in fundamental theoretical research.

QMUL joins the Einstein Telescope collaboration

Sat, 21 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0100

QMUL has joined the Einstein Telescope (ET) collaboration with a new ET Research Unit supported by School of Mathematical Sciences and the School of Physical and Chemical Sciences. ET is a European project, driven by an international collaboration, for an innovative gravitational-wave observatory. It will be part of a third-generation of gravitational-wave detectors which is poised to revolutionise our comprehension of the Universe and the fundamentals of gravity, while pushing the boundaries of technology.

Dr Heli Hietala appointed as Guest Investigator on Mercury mission

Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0100

Dr H. Hietala, Senior Lecturer in Space Plasma Physics at QMUL, has been appointed a Guest Investigator on the BepiColombo mission. BepiColombo is a joint mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to the planet Mercury consisting of two spacecraft. Launched on 20 October 2018, it will arrive at Mercury in November 2026, with science operations starting in early 2027. In March 2026, ESA, JAXA, and NASA appointed 11 Guest Investigators: 5 from ESA member states, 5 from the USA, and 1 from Japan. Dr Hietala will use Mercury's small bow shock and magnetosphere as a unique Solar System laboratory to study shock dynamics in high magnetic fields and strong driving close to the Sun. She will also combine BepiColombo with SolarOrbiter and ParkerSolarProbe missions to obtain multi-point measurements of the propagation of large-scale interplanetary shocks driven by solar eruptions before they impact Earth.

Queen Mary Astronomy Unit awarded £1.5 million for astrophysics and space science research

Tue, 10 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0100

Researchers in the Astronomy Unit (AU), in the School of Physical and Chemical Sciences at Queen Mary, have been awarded a total of £1.5 million from the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) to fund 3 research projects over the next 3 years. The research grants cover Queen Mary's internationally leading research in space plasma physics, planetary science, and cosmology and will support 3 postdoctoral researchers and 4 academic staff in the AU. The funded projects are: a project, led by Dr Christopher Chen (PI), Dr Heli Hietala (Co-I), and Dr Davide Manzini (RIA), to understand how multi-scale plasma processes in near-Earth space work together to shape the energy transfer and control the dynamics in this key environment. a project, led by Dr David Mulryne (PI) and Dr Laura Iacconi (RIA), to connect inflationary cosmology to observations on all scales by confronting the interplay between predictions for large-scale structure observations and small-scale gravitational waves and primordial black holes. a project, led by Prof Richard Nelson (PI) and Dr Eleftheria Sarafidou (RIA) to investigate how planets interact with the protoplanetary discs in which they are born during the epoch of planet formation. This project is an essential step in understanding what determines the architectures of planetary systems and will play a central role in comparing the predictions of models of planet formation with forthcoming discoveries of exoplanet systems. In a funding round that was particularly competitive this year, this is a significant achievement that reflects Queen Mary's leading Astronomy research.

Queen Mary to host Amplitudes 2026

Sat, 07 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0100

The Centre for Theoretical Physics and Astronomy at the School of Physical and Chemical Sciences is delighted to announce that Queen Mary University of London will host Amplitudes 2026, the international conference on scattering amplitudes, from 29 June to 3 July 2026. Amplitudes is an annual international conference series focused on scattering amplitudes in quantum field theory, string theory, and related areas of high-energy theoretical physics. The series has become since its inception in 2009 a central meeting point for researchers developing modern analytic and geometric methods for computing amplitudes, including unitarity techniques, bootstrap approaches, on-shell methods, twistor and geometric formulations, and connections to gravity and cosmology. The conference brings together leading experts, early-career researchers, and students to share recent advances, foster collaboration, and chart new directions in the study of fundamental interactions. Queen Mary will be the first institution to host Amplitudes twice, having previously held the conference in 2010. An Amplitudes 2026 Summer School will take place the week after the conference, from 6 to 10 July 2026, at the University of Southampton. Both events are funded by SAGEX, a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network funded by the European Commission. For more information, visit the conference website here.

Queen Mary hosts international PLATO Theory Meeting as ESA's exoplanet mission approaches launch

Wed, 14 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0100

Queen Mary's Astronomy Unit (AU) has just hosted the third PLATO Theory Meeting, bringing more than 70 researchers to Mile End to discuss how the community can make the most of ESA's forthcoming exoplanet mission, PLATO. The meeting, held from 12–14 January 2026, was organised by the AU's Exoplanets and Planet Formation group and took place in the Mathematical Sciences building. It brought together theorists and observers working across the full breadth of exoplanet science, with a shared focus on turning PLATO's expected discoveries into reliable physical understanding. Researchers came from institutions across Europe and beyond, reflecting the breadth of international interest in the mission. PLATO, which is scheduled for launch towards the end of 2026, is designed to deliver a large, well-characterised sample of planetary systems, including Earth-sized planets in the habitable zones of Sun-like stars. Its particular strength will be the combination of planet detections with precise stellar characterisation — including masses, radii, ages and orbital architectures — enabling population-level questions about how planets form, migrate and evolve to be addressed with statistical power that has not previously been possible. The mission's expected bounty of thousands of new exoplanets promises to transform our understanding of planetary demographics across the galaxy. Against that backdrop, the meeting followed a clear narrative arc: from protoplanetary discs and the earliest stages of planet formation, through disc–planet interactions and migration, to mature system architectures, interiors, tides and long-term dynamical evolution. The format deliberately prioritised discussion, with short talks and poster contributions feeding into structured sessions aimed at identifying shared priorities and practical next steps for the PLATO theory community. The meeting was chaired by Professor Richard Nelson, who leads the Exoplanets and Planet Formation group at Queen Mary. "PLATO represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to put planet formation theory to the test at scale," said Professor Nelson. "Bringing together the theory community now — before the data arrive — means we can coordinate our efforts, identify the key open questions, and make sure we're in the best possible position to extract the most science from the mission." The group that organised and hosted the meeting is one of the most active in the UK in the fields of planet formation and exoplanet science. Professor Nelson's own research focuses on the formation and dynamical evolution of planetary systems, including the migration of planets through protoplanetary discs — a key process that shapes the architectures PLATO will observe. Dr Tom Haworth, a Dorothy Hodgkin Fellow, holds a €2m European Research Council Consolidator Grant to investigate how the radiation environments around young stars drive the evolution of planet-forming discs, work that is central to understanding how the diversity of planetary systems we observe ultimately originates. Dr Ed Gillen, a Reader in Astrophysics, was awarded a €1.5m ERC grant to study how planetary systems evolve during their early lives by detecting and characterising young exoplanets — research directly complementary to what PLATO will deliver for older systems. Dr Andrew Winter, a Royal Society University Research Fellow, is investigating how the large-scale star formation environment shapes the properties of exoplanet populations, linking the conditions in which stars are born to the planets they end up hosting. Together, the group spans the full chain from disc physics and planet birth to the mature systems that missions like PLATO will characterise in unprecedented detail, making Queen Mary a natural home for this kind of community-wide planning meeting. For QMUL, the meeting underscored both the strength of the Astronomy Unit's planets programme and its capacity to convene and lead international scientific activity. Further details, including the full programme, are available on the meeting webpage.

Building the European Heliophysics Community

Thu, 18 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0100

Heliophysics is a broad discipline studying the Sun, its sphere of influence, and how it affects the bodies in the solar system – our space environment. Heliophysics is inherently cross-disciplinary, and includes components of solar physics, space plasma physics, ionosphere-thermosphere physics, magnetospheric physics, planetary physics, small body physics, and space weather. The physics of ionized and partially ionised plasmas is common across these components. Space plasma physicists at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) are playing key roles in a community-building effort to foster strategic coordination, collaboration, and growth within the European Heliophysics Community (EHC). A white paper presenting a vision for the future of Heliophysics in Europe and outlining the initial steps towards establishing the EHC has just been published in Annales Geophysicae. Dr H. Hietala, Senior Lecturer in Space Plasma Physics at QMUL and one of the authors of the paper, was also interviewed for the blog of the European Geosciences Union (EGU), for her motivation and ambitions in driving Europe's heliophysics efforts. She said: "Heliophysics is both a science of connections and a science that connects. The EHC embodies this spirit by bringing people together across specialties, career stages, and geographical boundaries." QMUL Marie Skłodowska-Curie postdoctoral fellow Dr F. Koller gave the first presentation in the new EHC online seminar series HelioMeet on "Connecting Solar Wind Drivers to Heliospheric and Magnetospheric Physics".

Evidence for a new Higgs boson decay

Mon, 08 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0100

Physicists at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), together with international collaborators, have found evidence of the decay of Higgs bosons to muons. Muons are particles typically found in cosmic rays and have a low mass, and because of this the Standard Model of particle physics predicts that this decay is very rare. Because of this, this new result offers a unique test of the predicted properties of the Higgs boson: so far this decay is every bit as rare as expected, but now that it has been seen the team is working toward further detailed measurements. The ultimate goal is to find discrepancies between the Higgs and predictions, which would provide clues to new theories Beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. The article, "Evidence for the Dimuon Decay of the Higgs Boson in pp Collisions with the ATLAS Detector" was published in Physical Review Letters, one of the most distinguished journals in the field. The significance of this evidence and the strength of the analysis earned the paper a Viewpoint selection by the journal's editors, a distinction awarded to only around 0.2% of its published articles. This recognition highlights both the scientific importance of the measurement and the impact of the collaborative contributions that made it possible.  At the Particle Physics Research Centre at QMUL, a dedicated team worked with international collaborators on the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. The QMUL team contributed key advances that strengthened ATLAS's sensitivity to the Higgs decay into two muons. Led by academics Dr Ulla Blumenschein and Dr Seth Zenz, together with Dr Christos Vergis and PhD student Arnav Avad, the group focused on improving analyses of Higgs production associated with W and Z bosons. The team refined the analysis through updated event selections, improved background-rejection strategies, and advanced AI techniques that enhanced the discrimination between signal and background. They developed a novel search channel in which the Higgs is produced with a Z boson that decays invisibly into neutrinos, extending ATLAS's reach into previously unexplored territory. These QMUL-driven innovations sharpened the precision of this measurement, enabling the Higgs decay to muons to be identified. For the researchers involved, the motivation behind this effort is both scientific and personal. As Dr Blumenschein notes, confirming the Higgs–fermion interaction beyond the third generation remains a central question: "So far we have confirmed the Higgs interaction with fermions only for third-generation fermions. The Higgs might still be a Beyond the Standard Model Higgs that does not interact with the first two generations. So it is very important to check whether it couples to second-generation fermions as expected from the Standard Model."  For Arnav Avad, the project has been as much about discovery as it has been about growth. Working on the Higgs to dimuon analysis exposed him to reconstruction tools, machine-learning methods and even hands-on hardware responsibilities within the ATLAS experiment. As he explains, "I enjoy exploring different methods and tools that help us identify the Higgs boson more clearly when it decays into two muons. QMUL has a close, supportive community where everyone works together to contribute to the ATLAS experiment." Reflecting on his own highlights, he adds, "Publishing a paper in PRL where I made major contributions is very fulfilling… being part of an institution that allows me to review papers and provide feedback is equally enjoyable, as it ensures that all research released to the public from ATLAS meets the highest standards."  The QMUL team is already working on further refinements and new analysis techniques, which will enable even more precise tests of the 2nd generation Higgs interactions in the Standard Model.

Dr Christopher Chen appointed as a Fellow of the American Physical Society

Thu, 09 Oct 2025 23:00:00 +0100

We are delighted to announce that Dr Christopher Chen, Reader in Space Plasma Physics in the Astronomy Unit of the School of Chemical and Physical Sciences, has been made a Fellow of the American Physical Society. This prestigious honour recognises Dr Chen's "…outstanding use of in-situ solar-wind spacecraft observations to probe the detailed physics of turbulence and kinetic processes in astrophysical plasmas, bridging observational space plasma physics and fundamental plasma theory." Dr Chen was selected to be an APS fellow for his research in Plasma Astrophysics - an interdisciplinary field at the intersection between fundamental plasma physics and astronomy. His research involves using spacecraft throughout the solar system to study how the different processes in the solar wind work at a fundamental level, how these control the variety of conditions in the space environment, and how they impact space weather. He said: "It's a great honour to be selected as a Fellow of the American Physical Society. I'd like to thank the APS Topical Group in Plasma Astrophysics and my colleagues for supporting my work through the years. I will continue to do my best to advance Plasma Astrophysics and promote the values of the APS for the benefit of science and society."

Queen Mary led team discovers warped planetary nurseries

Tue, 26 Aug 2025 23:00:00 +0100

New ALMA observations reveal that the discs where planets form are often slightly warped, challenging long-held assumptions and offering clues about the subtle misalignments seen in our own Solar System. The textbook picture of how planets form – serene, flat discs of cosmic dust – has just received a significant cosmic twist. New research, published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters, is set to reshape this long-held view. An international team of scientists, wielding the formidable power of the Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array (ALMA), has found compelling evidence that many protoplanetary discs, the very birthplaces of planets, are in fact subtly warped. These slight bends and twists in the disc plane, often just a few degrees, bear a striking resemblance to the subtle tilts observed among the planets in our own Solar System. This discovery suggests the initial conditions for planetary systems might be far less orderly than previously thought, with profound implications for how planets grow and settle into their final orbits. Dr Andrew Winter, the lead author of the study from Queen Mary University of London where he is Royal Society University Research Fellow in astronomy, said:"Our results suggest that protoplanetary discs are slightly warped. This would be quite a change in how we understand these objects and has many consequences for how planets form. Particularly interesting is that the couple of degree warping is similar to the differences in inclination between our own Solar System planets." To uncover these subtle twists, the team meticulously analysed Doppler shifts – tiny changes in the radio waves emitted by carbon monoxide (CO) molecules swirling within the discs. These shifts act like a cosmic speedometer, revealing the gas's exact motion. As part of a major ALMA programme called exoALMA, researchers used this flagship observatory to map the gas's velocity across each disc in unprecedented detail. By carefully modelling these intricate patterns, they were able to detect when different regions of a disc were slightly tilted, thus revealing the warps. "These modest misalignments may be a common outcome of star and planet formation," Dr Winter added, noting the intriguing parallel with our own Solar System. The research not only provides a fresh perspective on the mechanics of planet formation but also raises new questions about why these discs are warped – a mystery the team is eager to unravel. Dr Myriam Benisty, director of the Planet and Star Formation Department at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy said,"exoALMA has revealed large scale structures in the planet forming discs that were completely unexpected. The warp-like structures challenge the idea of orderly planet formation and pose a fascinating challenge for the future." Is it the gravitational pull of unseen companion stars, or perhaps the chaotic dance of gas and dust that twists these stellar cradles? The findings show that these subtle disc warps, often tilting by as little as half a degree to two degrees, can naturally explain many of the prominent large-scale patterns observed in the gas's motion across the discs. They even suggest these warps could be responsible for creating intriguing spiral patterns and slight temperature variations within these cosmic nurseries. If these warps are a key driver of how gas moves within the disc, it profoundly changes our understanding of critical processes like turbulence and how material is exchanged – ultimately dictating how planets form and settle into their final orbits. Intriguingly, the nature of these warps appears to be connected to how much material the young star is actively drawing in towards its centre. This hints at a dynamic link between the disc's innermost regions, where the star is fed, and its outer, planet-forming areas. This discovery offers a thrilling glimpse into the complex and often surprising realities of planet formation, fundamentally changing our cosmic blueprint and opening new avenues for understanding the diverse worlds beyond our Sun. This research was conducted by the 'exoALMA' collaboration that is an international collaboration of institutions including the Max-Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA), University of Florida, Leiden Observatory (Leiden University), European Southern Observatory, Università degli Studi di Milano, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Universidad de Chile, University of St. Andrews, Université Côte d'Azur, The University of Georgia, Monash University, University of Leeds, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, University of Cambridge, Ibaraki University, Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy & Astrophysics, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies (SOKENDAI), Wesleyan University, and The Pennsylvania State University.

New research reveals presence of helicity barrier in the near-Sun solar wind

Tue, 08 Jul 2025 23:00:00 +0100

New research utilising data from NASA's Parker Solar Probe has provided the first direct evidence of a phenomenon known as the "helicity barrier" in the solar wind. This discovery, published in Physical Review X by Queen Mary's Astronomy Unit researchers, offers a significant step towards understanding two long-standing mysteries: how the Sun's atmosphere is heated to millions of degrees and how the supersonic solar wind is generated. The solar atmosphere, or corona, is far hotter than the Sun's surface, a paradox that has puzzled scientists for decades. Furthermore, the constant outflow of plasma and magnetic fields from the Sun, known as the solar wind, is accelerated to incredible speeds. Turbulent dissipation – the process by which mechanical energy is converted into heat – is believed to play a crucial role in both these phenomena. However, in the near-Sun environment, where plasma is largely collisionless, the exact mechanisms of this dissipation have remained elusive. This new study, led by AU PhD student Jack McIntyre and his supervisor Dr Christopher Chen, leverages data from NASA's Parker Solar Probe, which has become the closest spacecraft to the Sun, flying directly through the solar atmosphere. This unprecedented proximity allowed researchers to directly explore this extreme environment for the first time, providing critical data to unravel these mysteries. The paper presents compelling evidence that the "helicity barrier" is active and profoundly alters the nature of turbulent dissipation. This effect, previously theorised, creates a barrier to the turbulent cascade of energy at small scales, fundamentally changing how fluctuations dissipate and thus how the plasma is heated. Read the full story here