Friday 24 October 2025
Munster Technological University (MTU) has become the first Irish institution to take a direct role in the world’s largest scientific experiment at CERN – the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, as part of a global effort to uncover the fundamental secrets of the universe.
Paddy McGowan, lecturer, MTU working on the optimisation of structures within the core of ATLAS which are essential for its future operation.
The governmented that the country has become an Associate Member of CERN, with MTU now playing a leading role in the world’s most powerful scientific machine, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).
Ireland’s first technical associate institute to join the ATLAS Collaboration
Last year, MTU became Ireland’s first technical associate institute to join the ATLAS Collaboration, one of the LHC’s flagship experiments that helped discover the Higgs boson particle in 2012. Of the 246 organisations worldwide analysing CERN-ATLAS data, a mere 17 are technical associate institutes, placing MTU among a select group of institutes worldwide.
Two of the MTU researchers working with the CERN ATLAS-ITk teams. Dr Manuel Caballero, senior researcher, MTU and Paddy McGowan, lecturer, MTU. Dr Caballero's work focuses on ensuring that critical data from the ATLAS-ITk experiment are routed reliably at high data rates. McGowan's work addresses complex routing and thermal analysis of cooling pipes that are critical to ensuring the experiment performs optimally.
MTU’s contribution to CERN is focused on engineering critical systems for the ATLAS detector as it prepares for the upcoming 'High-Luminosity' phase of the LHC.
Senior researcher Dr Manuel Caballero, senior researcher, MTU and his team are building and testing the electrical panels and cables that will deliver power to the upgraded detectors, where every component must function to avoid disrupting experiments involving scientists across the world.
While lecturer Paddy McGowan and his team at MTU are designing the delicate mechanical supports that will hold thousands of sensors, along with the cooling pipes and cables, all operating under extreme conditions deep underground. MTU is also contributing to the design of the core cooling system for these detectors.
'Be part of one of humanity’s greatest scientific quests'
Dr Niall Smith, head of research and CERN-ATLAS lead, MTU, who emphasises that this work is about more than engineering, said: “This is about giving Irish staff, students, and industry the chance to be part of one of humanity’s greatest scientific quests.”
The first batch of patch panels successfully delivered to CERN after stringent testing. These play a crucial role in routing data. Once installed they cannot be easily accessed. Reliability and performance testing is therefore crucial.
Dr Seán McSweeney, dean of engineering, serves as the deputy lead, with support from the Nimbus Research Centre and the Department of Mechanical, Manufacturing and Biomedical Engineering.
ATLAS spokesperson and CERN physicist Andreas Hoecker said: “We are thrilled to welcome Munster Technological University to the international ATLAS Collaboration at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. MTU’s innovative engineering expertise will be a tremendous asset as we prepare for the high-luminosity phase of the LHC. MTU is the first Irish research institution to join ATLAS, marking an exciting milestone.”
Through this work, Irish engineers and researchers at MTU are helping build the tools that may one day explain dark matter, the origins of the universe, and why it exists. MTU’s involvement is inspiring the next generation of Irish scientists and engineers to dream bigger than ever before.
To know more, please visit: https://home.cern/