Last week I flew to San Francisco to attend the first users meeting for FACET, the accelerator test and experimental facility being constructed in my absence which will be operated by my Division next year. The meeting actually went well; I chaired one of the working groups and we will put together an experimental proposal. This ties right in with one aspect of the work I am doing here at CERN, having to do with using crystals to deflect highly energetic particles in a way usually only achievable with very large and expensive magnets. At FACET we will be able to do a series of accurate experiments in particular comparing the deflection of negatively charged electrons and that of their positively charged antiparticles (positrons). FACET should be uniquely suited to this kind of work. At CERN we are doing the same thing with protons.
Being back in the Bay Area was great; I met with Robin who came up from Monterey, having a recording session with PYO that weekend anyway. We had a good time, going to a Keith Jarret concert in SF on Friday evening and having Dinner at Laura & Eric’s place on Saturday.
With all that joy one would think I’d be really loathing to leave again, but strangely enough, not really. In fact I was quite looking forward to coming back to Ferney and CERN and was happy when I had made it home. So I guess I am a little in the Twilight Zone as far as the concept of “home” is concerned… odd.
I think you should patent the use of these crystals for deflecting high energy beams ; then figure out how to mass produce them; license them to Apple for inclusion in the next iPhone release.
I can already see the advertising campaign…”You want to deflect High Energy Particles?”..Yep! there’s an App for that!