On March 11, 2025, the Accelerator Technology & Applied Physics (ATAP) Division at Berkeley Lab and the Lab’s K-12 STEM Education Program hosted a group of K-12 students and teachers from James Logan High School, a public high school in Union City, California. Special Programs and Volunteer Training Coordinator Elina Dluger Rios from the K-12 STEM Education & Outreach Program organized the visit with help and participation from ATAP and the Lab’s Molecular Foundry.
The group took a guided tour of the Lab’s superconducting magnet assembly and Advanced Light Source (ALS) facilities. They also heard a talk on superconducting magnets from Paolo Ferracin, a senior scientist and deputy of ATAP’s Superconducting Magnet Program. The event is one of many that the Lab undertakes as part of its commitment to fostering the next generation of scientists.
“My lecture focused on the importance of fundamental scientific research in our societies and its impact on everyday life, on the role of big science, and the function of a particle accelerator,” says Ferracin. “I then introduced superconducting magnets, which are one of the main components of a particle collider.”
He adds the lecture was presented in the Magnet Assembly Area of Building 77A, where the superconducting magnets for the high-luminosity upgrade to the Large Hadron Collider, the world’s most powerful accelerator. “So the students could see our superconducting cable machine and an actual superconducting magnet.”
Ferracin says the students were “fascinated by the magnets, which are very big and expensive objects by any standard, and asked insightful questions about superconductivity.” Using the magnetic levitation train, he demonstrated superconductivity by showing how superconducting materials repel external magnetic fields.
“The attention that the students paid to what we said and to what we showed them, as well as their curiosity and enthusiasm, confirmed to me the importance of reaching out to high school students, particularly when deciding which topics they plan to study at university. This is exactly the moment when I think these outreach activities can make a difference and play a fundamental role in forming the next generation of scientists.”
The students then toured the ALS while learning how researchers use these magnets to generate powerful beams of X-rays and how those X-rays are used for research.
“Because the ALS was shut down, they saw the accelerator itself,” says Outreach & Communications Specialist Ina Reichel, who conducted the ALS tour. “They were interested in several research applications, including medical research using protein crystallography beamlines, most of which use a superconducting bend magnet to generate the X-rays. Later in the day, they also learned about the Large Hadron Collider so that we could compare and contrast ALS and LHC for them.”
Ambika Sekar, a physics teacher at James Logan High School who accompanied the students, said, “The visit to the Lab and the interactions with the scientists provided an invaluable experience. Such field trips cannot be replaced by watching YouTube videos or virtual visits, and the opportunity to engage directly with scientists and see the work encourages students to evaluate scientific research as a possible future for them and leaves a lasting impression.”
Sekar added that the students were “amazed by the Advanced Light Source facility and Paolo [Ferracin]’s demonstrations of superconductivity. I wish we could do this twice yearly, once in the first semester and once in the second.”
Other Berkeley Lab staff members who participated in the visit included included ATAP Deputy Director of Operations Asmita Patel, K-12 Program Administrative Assistant Jacari Scott, Engineering Division’s Joshua Herrera, and the Lab’s Molecular Foundry Director of External Relations Laurie Chong, who organized a guided tour of the Molecular Foundry.
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