Mumbai has reason to be proud, as a professor from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IIT-B) has made a major contribution to the ongoing Big Bang experiment in Europe.
Professor Raghava Varma from the IIT-B’s Physics Engineering department is overseeing A Large Iron Collaborator Experiment (ALICE), one of the four parts of the $10 billion experiment. Prof Varma hopes to get the accelerator physics technology to India, as it will play a major role in fulfilling requirements like water, electricity, health and other aspects of human life in the near future.
Speaking to The Asian Age, Prof Varma, who is currently in the city to fulfill his duties as a teacher, said that it was indeed an honour not only for the IIT-B, but also the country to be part of the experiment being conducted to get answers pertaining to fundamental nature of the universe that remains a mystery.
“The ALICE is the product of the IIT-B, and is one of the four supplementary parts of the main experiment. The detector has been made by the IIT faculty and students, and its findings are being monitored by three of our students, who are currently at the experiment site,” Prof Varma said. Three IIT-B students — Shoubhik Datta, Ajit Werabuna and Satyajit Gaur — have got the opportunity to oversee the functioning of ALICE.
Speaking about the experiment and its benefits, Prof Varma said, “Apart from finding answers to the evolution of the universe, the experiment has thrown open new avenues that will go a long way in alleviating human life.”
“I am really fortunate to get an opportunity to be part of the experiment. It is my desire to get the technology to India, and offer it to the students who have great potential to help
the country,” said Prof Varma.