Progressively Sharper Rocks

The history of the human species is inexorably linked with the construction of better and better tools. Our desire to understand the basic principles of our universe has culminated in the creation of one of the most powerful tools of discovery ever conceived: The Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Located under the Swiss-French border near Geneva, collisions inside the LHC provide us with the deepest look at the most basic structure of matter. Collecting and interpreting these data requires the use of other advanced tools such as the ATLAS and CMS detectors. These machines are continually refined to meet the demands on their operation through projects such as the ATLAS New Small Wheel (NSW) upgrade. Composed of two complimentary detector technologies, the NSW will enhance the ability of the ATLAS Muon spectrometer to collect the immense volume of data that the LHC produces. Once completed, the NSW will help to reduce fake signals in the high rapidity regions of the ATLAS detector allowing the ATLAS trigger system to reliably collect the most relevant data. Additionally, the NSW will allow for enhanced reconstruction of high rapidity muons for use in physics measurements. Carleton University plays a large part in the construction of one of these detectors: The small-strip Thin Gap Chambers (sTGC).