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2026 Canadian Astroparticle Physics Community Meeting

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Description

REGISTRATION FOR IN-PERSON ATTENDANCE OPENS FEB 17


The Arthur B. McDonald Canadian Astroparticle Physics Research Institute is delighted to invite you to the National Meeting at Queen's University from July 28-July 29. This event is open to all members of the Canadian astroparticle physics research community. 

 

The meeting will follow a special one-day HQP workshop on July 27.

Edward Thomas
Participants
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  • Monday 27 July
  • Tuesday 28 July
  • Wednesday 29 July
    • 08:15
      Breakfast (Biosciences Atrium)
    • Astroparticle Physics: New Scientist (1102 Biosciences Complex)
      Convener: Tony Noble
      Remote Access (Zoom)
      • 9
        Quantum sensing for (very)light dark matter direct detection

        Dark matter direct detection has seen a surge of progress in the mass window of 1 MeV - 1 GeV, however very-light but particle light dark matter remains a stubbornly elusive target. In this talk I will explain a detection strategy using "recoilless" quantum observables that are accessible via interferometry. These observables allow one to access particle-like dark matter all the way down to the ~5 eV limit where wave-like phenomena begin to dominate.

        Speaker: Ryan Plestid
        Plestid-Macdonald-Institute.pdf
      • 10
        The search for rare events with cryogenic detectors

        Cryogenic (O(mK)) technologies are used for a variety of applications in astroparticle, nuclear, and quantum physics. Through my research I seek to optimize these technologies to measure very faint signals. This includes experiments searching for dark matter (SuperCDMS and COSINUS) and highly forbidden nuclear decays (RAMPS/LUCE). These experiments all utilize similar cryogenic systems but have a wide diversity in goals. This talk will provide an overview of my research portfolio introducing each of the above experiments and some of the excellent science that takes place at SNOLAB.

        Speaker: Matt Stukkel
        Stukel_MI_SNOLAB_Lecture.pdf
      • 11
        Characterizing qubits at SNOLAB

        Ionizing radiation from cosmic rays and terrestrial sources creates non-equilibrium quasiparticles that limit superconducting qubit coherence times. This is a major hurdle for fault-tolerant quantum computing. To isolate and study this decoherence mechanism, the "QUTEbits" collaboration is utilizing the exceptionally low-radiation environment of the Cryogenic Underground TEst facility (CUTE) at SNOLAB, which is located 2 km underground. By comparing the performance of the same superconducting qubits and resonators in both surface laboratories (at the University of Waterloo) and deep underground (at SNOLAB), we aim to quantify the direct impact of environmental radiation on quantum systems. This talk will outline the project's experimental setup and discuss preliminary findings from our first underground measurements.

        Speaker: Vijay Iyer
        VIyer_MIACM2026v1.pdf
        VIyer_MIACM2026v1.pptx
        VIyer_MIACM2026v1.pptx
    • 10:30
      Break
    • Astroparticle Physics: Theory (1102 Biosciences Complex)
      Convener: Aaron Vincent (Queen's University)
      Remote Access (Zoom)
      • 12
        Dark Matter–Induced UV Radiation and the Formation of Supermassive Black Hole Seeds
        Speaker: Han Wu (Queen's University, McDonald Institute)
        Han_Wu_MI.pdf
        Han_Wu_MI.pptx
      • 13
        Searching for Ultra Heavy Dark Matter in Mica
        Speaker: Andrew Buchanan (Queen's University)
        MI2026.pdf
        MI2026.pptx
      • 14
        Toward Two-Photon Absorption Characterization of Silicon Photomultipliers for Dark Matter Detector Applications
        Speaker: Udaykaran Madaan (TRIUMF)
        McDonald Inst. Slides.pptx
    • 12:30
      Lunch (Biosciences Atrium)
    • HQP Workshop: Beading Astroparticle Physics - Early Learnings (1102 Biosciences Complex)
      Convener: Alexandra Pedersen (McDonald Institute)
      Remote Access (Zoom)
    • Multimessenger: Contributed Talks (1102 Biosciences Complex)
      Convener: Conor McGrath (Queen's University)
      Remote Access (Zoom)
      • 15
        Searching for astrophysical neutrino sources with high energy neutrino detectors

        One of the key open questions of high energy astrophysics is the nature of astrophysical particle accelerators. Neutrinos may hold the key to solving this mystery: if protons are being accelerated in addition to electrons in the source, neutrinos will be produced alongside their electromagnetic radiation, providing a clear signature for the type of particles involved. Using signatures from multiple messenger particles, including neutrinos, gamma-rays, and gravitational waves, can provide meaningful constraints on particle acceleration in those sources. In 2013, the IceCube Neutrino Observatory first announced the detection of a TeV - PeV flux of astrophysical neutrinos, although the source of the vast majority of those neutrinos remains unknown. In this talk, I will discuss an analysis for IceCube neutrinos from extreme BL Lac objects, where recent modeling efforts of the full electromagnetic spectrum can be used to provide a neutrino expectation for the search. Results from the neutrino search will provide important constraints to understanding particle acceleration mechanisms in these sources. I will also give an outlook for a new Canadian-led neutrino detector, the Pacific Ocean Neutrino Experiment (P-ONE), which will be deploying its first line soon and will have good sensitivity to Galactic neutrino sources.

        Speaker: Jessie Thwaites (Queen's University)
        jthwaites_MIMeeting_2026 (1).pdf
      • 16
        P-ONE Status Summary

        The Pacific Ocean Neutrino Experiment (P-ONE) is a cubic-kilometre scale neutrino telescope planned to be deployed 2.6 km deep in the Pacific Ocean off Canada’s West Coast. P-ONE is designed to observe high-energy TeV to PeV astrophysical neutrinos and aims to identify their sources throughout the universe. The detector will consist of a three-dimensional lattice of optical modules instrumented along kilometre tall mooring lines. These modules measure the deposition of Cherenkov light induced by secondary particles in neutrino interactions, which is subsequently used to identify the flavour, energy, and direction of incident neutrinos. P-ONE will be deployed in phases, the first of which is P-ONE-1, the first mooring line of the telescope. To date, P-ONE-1 has been assembled and has undergone successful preliminary water testing. With the scheduled deployment of P-ONE-1 on the horizon later this summer, this talk will give a status overview of P-ONE, highlighting the design of P-ONE-1, expected performance, and plans for the future.

        Speaker: Jakub Stacho
        pone-status.pdf
      • 17
        P-ONE Demonstrator PMT Characterization
        Speaker: Bryan Owens (Queen's University)
        MI_AM_BryanOwens_2026.pdf
    • 15:10
      Break
    • Multimessenger: Contributed Talks (1102 Biosciences Complex)
      Convener: Kenneth Clark
      Remote Access (Zoom)
    • McDonald Institute: Wrap Up (1102 Biosciences Complex)
      Convener: Tony Noble
      McDonald-Institute Keynote Presentation July 28 - 2026 - National Meeting in Kingston.pdf
      McDonald-Institute Keynote Presentation July 28 - 2026 - National Meeting in Kingston.pptx
      Remote Access (Zoom)