A former student from the GPP-UdeM group gets awarded the 2015 CAP Vogt Medal

The Canadian Association of Physicists (CAP) and TRIUMF are pleased to announce that the 2015 CAP-TRIUMF Vogt Medal for Contributions to Subatomic Physics is awarded to Prof. Pierre Savard, University of Toronto/ TRIUMF, for his contributions to particle physics and in particular for his leadership of the Higgs -> WW analysis, which was an important ingredient in establishing that the discovered particle was, in fact, the Higgs boson.

Pierre Savard is one of the leading particle physicists in the world, immensely respected for his deep insight into the physics of particle collisions and of the sophisticated detectors used to ‘see’ the collisions. In particle physics experiments, beams of particles collide at very high energies to probe the forces and symmetries that operate at sub-atomic scales. Modern efforts are very complex and sophisticated – over 10,000 scientists and engineers were involved in the construction and operation of the greatest accelerator project to date – the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, in Geneva. Analysis of the data produced by these experiments is also a very complex task, carried out by teams of scientists. In his career, Professor Savard has held leadership positions in two of the most important particle physics experiments, the CDF experiment at the Fermilab Tevatron Collider and ATLAS, one of the two experiments at the LHC. His contributions to CDF include precision measurements of the properties of the top quark and searches for exotic new particles. He was co-convenor – one of two leaders – of two important analysis teams for the ATLAS experiment: the so-called “exotics” group which searches for new physics beyond the standard model of particle physics, and the "Higgs boson" physics group. Professor Savard played a key role in the recent discovery of the Higgs boson, personally leading the effort to analyze one of three predicted decay modes of this heavy particle. Savard was one of six people on the ATLAS collaboration who prepared the drafts of the Higgs boson discovery paper, and in the following year he led the analysis team that showed that the Higgs boson is a spin-zero particle, paving the way for the 2013 Nobel Prize for Higgs and Englert.

The purpose of the Vogt Medal is to recognize and encourage outstanding experimental or theoretical contributions to subatomic physics. While the main criterion for awarding the Vogt Medal is the excellence of the research accomplishments, preference will be given for a recent important advance in subatomic physics and to researchers who are still active. The candidate's research should have been done primarily in Canada or in affiliation with a Canadian university, industry or government laboratory. The Vogt Medal was first introduced in 2011.

Prof. Savard will be presented with his medal at the 2015 CAP Congress (hosted by the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta, from June 15-19) at the end of his plenary talk and will be recognized during the Congress Recognition Reception at the Art Gallery on Thursday, June 18, 2015. Please refer to the Congress program for the schedule of plenary talks by CAP medal winners.

The Canadian Association of Physicists, founded in 1945, is a professional association representing over 1600 individual physicists and physics students in Canada, the U.S. and overseas, as well as a number of Corporate, Institutional, and Departmental Members. In addition to its learned activities, the CAP also undertakes a number of activities intended to encourage students to pursue a career in physics.

TRIUMF (www.triumf.ca) is one of the world’s leading subatomic physics laboratories. It brings together dedicated physicists and interdisciplinary talent, sophisticated technical resources, and commercial partners in a way that has established the laboratory as a global model of success. Its large user community is composed of international teams of scientists, post-doctoral fellows, and graduate and undergraduate students. The advances ensuing from TRIUMF’s research will enhance the health and quality of life of millions of Canadians, launch new high-tech companies, create new high specificity drugs, help us to understand the environment, enable the development of new materials, and spur the imaginations of our children who want to know their place in the universe.

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For more information, please contact:

Canadian Association of Physicists
Tel: 613-562-5614
Fax: 613-562-5615
E-mail: cap@uottawa.ca

or

Ms. Melissa M. Baluk
Communications Coordinator
Strategic Planning and Communications, TRIUMF
Tel. 604-222-7692
E-mail: mbaluk@triumf.ca