It reflects our major research themes in observational and theoretical cosmology, high-energy physics and elementary particle physics in a wider sense, particle astrophysics, large experiments and detector technologies, data-intensive science, and the design and exploitation of next-generation scientific infrastructure.
The series features talks that bridge fundamental physics—from the early Universe to the Standard Model and beyond—with the technological and experimental advances that make these discoveries possible.
The aim of these colloquia is to be accessible to a wide audience across the Laboratory and beyond, providing a forum for discussion across theory, experiment, and instrumentation. All members of the University community are warmly encouraged to attend.
See the details of all upcoming and previous talks below. Please check this page regularly for updates as speakers are confirmed and abstracts are added.
Venue and Time: Wednesday 27 May 2026, 16:15, Ray Dolby Auditorium, Ray Dolby Centre, Cavendish Laboratory, JJ Thomson Avenue, CB3 0US.
Title: The Infinity Machine: the Future Circular Collider and the journey ahead for particle physics
Abstract:
The Future Circular electron-positron Collider (FCC or FCC-ee) is the proposed next large-scale European, and indeed worldwide, particle physics accelerator. It is set to begin operation in the mid 2040s, soon after the end of operation of the High Luminosity LHC (HL-LHC), and will search for the ‘new physics’ that must lie beyond the Standard Model, our current best theory of nature. This search will be primarily performed through measurements of the Higgs boson as well as the W and Z, and the top quark, which will either probe important new properties for the first time, or vastly improve the precision of all previous studies. The motivation for these measurements will be explained, how they complement what will be achieved at the HL-LHC, and the challenges that accompany such an ambitious programme. The project status will be presented, including preparations for the civil engineering of the 91 km tunnel, together with societal and environmental considerations. Finally, a brief summary will be given on the prospects for FCC-hh, a future very high energy hadron collider that could be installed in the same tunnels.
Venue and Time: Tuesday 09 June 2026, 16:15, Ray Dolby Auditorium, Ray Dolby Centre, Cavendish Laboratory, JJ Thomson Avenue, CB3 0US.
Title: From Lab to Cosmos: The Possibility for Life in Non-Water Planetary Environments
Abstract: For thousands of years, inspired by the starry night sky, humanity has wondered what lies beyond Earth. In the past three decades, that question has transformed from philosophy to data: astronomers have discovered thousands of exoplanets orbiting stars other than the Sun, revealing that small rocky worlds are common in our galaxy. The exoplanet census has made one thing clear: Earth-like conditions may not be the norm. If most observationally accessible rocky worlds are hotter and more chemically aggressive than Earth, then limiting habitability to water-rich environments may be too restrictive.
We therefore turned to the laboratory to test whether biomolecules can survive in non-water solvents. Our recent experiments show that some key biomolecules—including amino acids, peptides, and a nucleic-acid–like polymer—can remain stable in concentrated sulfuric acid, the dominant liquid in Venus’ temperate cloud layer. Under the same conditions, lipids can even self-assemble into vesicles. This surprising chemistry reopens the question of whether Venus and Venus-like exoplanets might be habitable in the form of an aerial biosphere.
While building instrumentation and conducting laboratory studies for Venus’ clouds, we found that ionic liquids—exotic, polar, non-volatile solvents long known in chemistry—can form naturally from planetary materials, a connection that had been overlooked. Due in part to their extremely low vapor pressure, a variety of ionic liquids remain stable under extreme conditions where water cannot exist.
By considering water-alternative solvents, we open a new frontier that draws together quantum chemistry, biomolecular physics, planetary science, and space exploration—potentially transforming our understanding of life’s origins and its possibilities across the cosmos.
Short Bio: Professor Sara Seager is a Canadian-American astrophysicist and Professor of Physics, Professor of Planetary Science, and Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she holds the Class of 1941 Professor Chair. Her research ranges from the foundations of exoplanet atmospheres to innovative theories about life on other worlds and the development of novel space mission concepts. She was Deputy Science Director of NASA’s TESS mission, Principal Investigator of the JPL–MIT CubeSat ASTERIA, and has led major efforts to design space-based direct imaging missions with Starshade to discover another Earth. She now leads the Morning Star Missions to Venus in search of signs of life in Venus’ clouds. Her many honors include a MacArthur “genius” award, the Kavli Prize in Astrophysics, appointment as an Officer of the Order of Canada, and having Asteroid 9729 Seager named in her honor. She is the author of The Smallest Lights in the Universe: A Memoir. In Fall 2026, Professor Seager will return to Canada as the North Star Distinguished Professor at the University of Toronto’s Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics.
Venue and Time: Friday 20 March 2026, 16:15, Ray Dolby Auditorium, Ray Dolby Centre, Cavendish Laboratory, JJ Thomson Avenue, CB3 0US.
Title: Particle Physics Today and Tomorrow
Abstract:
This is an exciting and pivotal time for particle physics, where decisions that will be taken in the coming years will shape the long-term future of the field. In this colloquium, I will give a personal perspective on the status of particle physics and the prospects for the next yen years and beyond. I will discuss the importance of the Higgs boson and will give particular emphasis on the role of CERN in our exploration of the fundamental nature of the universe, both today and tomorrow. This colloquium is intended to be accessible to a wide audience.
About the speaker:
Mark Thomson was previously Professor of Experimental Particle Physics at the University of Cambridge. Between 2018-2024 he was the Executive Chair of the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), responsible for UK funding of particle physics, astrophysics and nuclear physics, and the operation of world-leading large-scale research infrastructure at Rutherford Appleton and Daresbury Laboratories. Prior to this, his research career focused on electroweak physics at CERN’s Large Electron Positron Collider, neutrino physics at Fermilab in the US, and the development of Particle Flow Calorimetry both for future colliders and Liquid Argon TPC neutrino detectors. Between 2015 and 2018, he was co-spokesperson of the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE). In 2013 he published “Modern Particle Physics” a textbook aimed at final-year undergraduate students and first-year graduate students, which has been widely adopted across the globe.
Venue and Time: Wednesday 4 March 2026, 16:15, Ray Dolby Auditorium, Ray Dolby Centre, Cavendish Laboratory, JJ Thomson Avenue, CB3 0US.
Title: Imaging Black Holes from ground and space
Abstract:
In 2019, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) captured the first-ever image of a black hole, observing itsdark shadow in the radio galaxy M87. In 2022, the black hole at the center of our Milky Way was imaged, validating our predictions made more than two decades ago. This confirmed the presence of supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies and provides strong evidence for the presence of an event horizon. The next step is to measure the properties of these black holes, test theories of gravity, and to understand the physics near the event horizon: Are these black holes spinning? What is the structure of accretion flows and jets? Is rotational energy extracted from the black hole to launch plasma jets? Where and how are particles accelerated that produce the radiations we see? To answer these question we will be engaging in campaigns to produce “color movies” of black holes, i.e. make dynamic images of black holes and observe them at multiple frequencies. To do this we are developing new imaging algorithms, new operational models, and new telescopes. The EHT is expanding further. Funded by an ERC Synergy grant,“Black Holistic”, we are now also building the 14m Africa mm-wave telescope (AMT) in Namibia, equipped with multiband receivers for Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) and transients research. In the future space interferometers will improve the results by another order of magnitude and promise even deeper insights into the nature of black holes.