CERN-Solvay student camp 4

5 Oct 2025, 14:00 → 11 Oct 2025, 17:00 Europe/Zurich

The CERN-Solvay student camps are residential camps for high school students aged 16+ who are curious about CERN and want to learn more about fundamental research in particle physics. For an entire week on site, participants will have the exciting opportunity to do hands-on experiments, visit research facilities at CERN, attend lectures and Q&A sessions, explore STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) careers, and take part in social activities. All participants will work in small groups on dedicated research projects guided by volunteers from CERN’s scientific community. The camps will be entirely in English. They will be attended by 30 high school students from all over the world. This is the agenda for the fourth camp, which will take place from 5 October to 11 October 2025. 

More information & application form: https://cern.ch/solvay-camp

Sunday 5 October

14:00 → 19:00 Welcome to CERN!

14:00 Arrive at CERN & check-in at CERN hotel

Check-in is possible as of 14:00. If you arrive earlier, you can leave your luggage at the hotel reception.

17:00 Welcome reception

Speaker: Guillaume Durey

17:45 Discover CERN Treasure Hunt

19:00 → 20:00 Dinner

20:00 → 21:30 Introductory remarks

20:00 Walk

20:15 Introductory remarks

Speaker: Guillaume Durey

Monday 6 October

08:00 → 09:15 Registration & breakfast

All students: Bring your identity document with you.

Group 1
8:00-8:30 Breakfast
8:30-9:00 Registration

Group 2
8:00-8:30 Registration
8:30-9:00 Breakfast

09:15 → 12:45 Introduction to CERN

09:15 Walk

09:30 Lecture: Introduction to CERN

Speaker: Jeff Wiener (CERN)

10:45 Walk

11:00 Synchrocyclotron and ATLAS Visitor Center

Group 1
11:00-11:40 Synchrocyclotron
11:40-11:50 Walk to AVC
11:50-12:30 ATLAS Control Room

Group 2
11:00-11:40 ATLAS Control Room
11:40-11:50 Walk to SC
11:50-12:30 Synchrocyclotron

12:30 Walk

12:45 → 13:45 Lunch break

13:45 → 17:15 Workshops & Lectures

13:45 Walk

14:00 Lab Workshop: Electron Beams

15:30 Break

16:00 Lecture: Introduction to Particle Accelerators

18:00 → 19:30 Dinner

19:30 → 20:30 Social activities

Tuesday 7 October

08:45 → 12:15 Visits & Lectures

09:00 Lecture: Introduction to the Standard Model

Speaker: Silke Van Der Schueren (CERN)

10:45 Walk

11:00 Visit: Low Energy Ion Ring & LINAC2

12:05 Walk

12:15 → 13:15 Lunch break

13:15 → 17:00 Lectures & Workshops

13:45 Lab Workshops: Cloud Chamber

15:00 Break & Group Photo

15:30 Lecture: Introduction to Particle Detectors

Speaker: David Barney (CERN)

17:30 → 19:00 Dinner

19:30 → 21:30 Movie night: Particle Fever

Wednesday 8 October

08:45 → 13:00 Lectures & visits

08:45 Walk

09:00 Lecture: Introduction to Medical Applications

Speaker: Manjit Dosanjh (University of Oxford (GB))

10:15 Break

10:30 Visit: CMS Cavern

10:30-11:00 Bus transport
11:00-12:30 CMS Underground Visit
12:30-13:00 Bus transport

13:00 → 14:00 Lunch break

14:00 → 14:45 CERN people bingo

15:00 → 18:20 Lectures & Visits

15:00 Lecture: The ATLAS Particle Detector

Speaker: Clara Nellist (University of Amsterdam and Nikhef (NL))

16:15 Walk

16:30 Visit: Antimatter Factory & Data Centre

Group 1
16:30-17:20 Antimatter Factory
17:20-17:30 Walk to Data Centre
17:30-18:20 Data Centre visitor point

Group 2
16:30-17:20 Data Centre visitor point
17:20-17:30 Walk to Antimatter Factory
17:30-18:20 Antimatter Factory

18:20 → 19:30 Dinner

Thursday 9 October

08:30 → 17:00 Project day

18:00 → 19:00 Dinner

19:00 → 20:30 Edit your videos

Friday 10 October

09:00 → 12:45 Lectures & Workshops

09:00 Solvay Lectures

10:45 Walk

11:00 Lab workshop: Superconductivity

12:30 Walk

12:45 → 14:00 Lunch break

14:00 → 17:45 Final Session

14:00 Walk

14:15 Q&A: Big science questions

Speaker: Frederik Van Der Veken (CERN)

15:15 Break

15:30 International gift swapping game

16:30 Break

16:45 Review of project day videos and closing ceremony

18:30 → 21:30 Bowling & Pizza

18:30 Tram to Balexert

19:00 Bowling & Pizza

Saturday 11 October

09:00 → 11:00 Breakfast & departures

09:00 → 17:00 Science Gateway Exhibitions

You are invited to visit the Science Gateway Exhibitons on your own, at any time throughout the day, as you wait to depart for the airport :)

11:00 → 12:00 Latest possible hotel check-out