GAHTIe

In recent years, the LHCb experiment has found tantalizing hints of new quantum effects in very rare processes in which so-called B-particles decay to muons or electrons. Although combinations of several of such measurements seem to indicate a consistent picture (recently referred to as the ‘flavour anomalies’), no clear single observation of a so-called “New Physics” phenomenon has been made. This project aims to perform such a measurements by introducing a new computing scheme, in particular allowing the improved detection of electrons and neutral (uncharged) particles. The upgraded LHCb detector is currently being installed and is scheduled to start taking data in the autumn of 2021. Given current expectations, and with the proposed computing scheme, this project has the unique potential to make a first and ground-breaking discovery of new fundamental particles. A key component of the upgraded LHCb detector is the processing of an unprecedented data rate of 4 TB/s in software on a heterogeneous farm of general purpose graphics processors (GPGPUs) and CPU servers. This research proposes to extend the GPGPU-based data filter with advanced capabilities for electron reconstruction and classification to enable the discovery of new physics.