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IPPP hosts Local Students for the International Masterclass on Particle Physics 2025
On the 28th of March, the IPPP hosted its second post-pandemic edition of the International Masterclass in Particle Physics, an immersive day of discovery where over 110 students from six local high schools became physicists for a day.
Participating schools included Newcastle High School for Girls, Durham Johnston Comprehensive School, Cramlington Learning Village, Thirsk School, Wellfield School, and Durham Sixth Form Centre.
The day began in Durham’s Teaching and Learning Centre with a lively particle physics card game that encouraged students to engage with IPPP volunteers. This was followed by an inspiring lecture by Jessica Turner on What is Our Universe Made Of?, setting the stage for a day centred around the mysteries of particle physics. Arturo de Giorgi then gave an engaging talk on Why Neutrinos Matter, sparking curiosity about one of the most elusive particles in the Standard Model.
After a mid-morning break, Dhruv Pasari introduced the hands-on challenge of the day: finding signal events in real data from the Minerva neutrino experiment. With support from our PhD students and postdocs, the students spent the afternoon analysing Minerva datasets, exploring what it means to identify neutrino interactions in a high background environment.
The event also offered insight into life as a physicist. Ansh Bhatnagar shared his journey as a PhD student, and a lively Q&A followed with curious sixth formers keen to know more about research careers.
The day concluded with a Zoom call with scientists at Fermilab, providing a direct link to the international experimental effort and helping students interpret their results in a broader context. The core part of the masterclass was the high-school students interacting with IPPP researchers.
Special thanks go to Ansh Bhatnagar, Pablo Candela, Arturo de Giorgi, Deppy Dimakou, Zara Graham-Jones, Daniel Maitre, Aidin Masouminia, Ivan Martinez-Soler, Ery McPartland, Dhruv Pasari, and Malina Rosca, whose enthusiasm and generosity made the day truly memorable for the students.
This year’s masterclass celebrated curiosity, collaboration, and the joy of scientific discovery. Plans are already underway for the 2026 edition.