Yale physicist David Moore is pioneering a new approach to studying neutrinos—tiny, neutral particles usually studied in remote or extreme environments like deep underground facilities or near nuclear reactors. Recently awarded a $1.35 million grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Moore plans to conduct his research using tabletop experiments in his New Haven lab.
The grant, announced on October 1, provides vital resources for Moore and his team to explore neutrinos and dark matter in innovative ways. They will develop levitated, cryogenic particles, cooled just above absolute zero, to measure recoil forces and energy deposits from tritium’s nuclear decay. Moore hopes to identify a previously unobserved decay of tritium that could produce neutrinos with precise energy, leading to enhanced methods for studying neutrino properties.
The funding will also allow for the purchase of an optical cryostat and support a team of postdoctoral researchers and students. This research could also extend beyond neutrinos, potentially testing the quantum nature of gravity and searching for elusive dark matter forms.
