Cherenkov Detectors and Telescopes: Their Role in Fundamental Research

by Dr Leonid Burmistrov (University of Geneva)

Monday 26 Oct 2026, 11:00 → 12:00 Europe/Zurich

BSP 626 (EPFL)

Cherenkov light has a unique set of properties that make this physical phenomenon highly attractive for beam instrumentation, particle detectors, and the construction of both ground-based and space-based astroparticle telescopes. This talk is dedicated to presenting applications in three areas of fundamental research. It will cover the Cherenkov detector for proton flux measurements installed in the primary vacuum of the SPS at CERN. The Aerogel Ring-Imaging Cherenkov (ARICH) particle identification detector currently operating in the Belle II experiment at KEK.  The Terzina space-based telescope, part of the NUSES mission scheduled for launch in 2027, designed to detect Earth-skimming neutrinos and ultra-high-energy cosmic rays through their interactions in the atmosphere. An the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO), with particular emphasis on the Large-Sized Telescopes (LSTs), which form the core of the observatory and are designed to detect gamma rays with energies as low as 20 GeV - the world record energy threshold.