Particle Physics Up Close in Beijing

With an AUC research grant and driven by a passion for exploring the unknown, electronics and communications engineering senior Shahd Younes packed her bags and set out for China this summer, where she is spending two months interning at the Institute of High Energy Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing.

“Being in China, I got to interact with so many different cultures and backgrounds,” Younes expressed. “The connections I've made here are really beneficial toward my career goals and for learning new techniques in my field.”

Younes first learned about her love for travel during her exchange semester at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. Eager to go abroad again, she was excited for the new experience that interning in China would bring. “My semester in the UK was amazing,” she shared. “In China, everything was so new. It’s a totally different society. It was definitely a cultural adjustment, but once I started to gain my footing, it all worked out. Getting to live in China for the summer is such a unique experience. I’m really glad I got to do it.”

On top of the cultural exchange, her internship in particle physics allows Younes to work on the frontier through research that involves the Higgs boson, one of the most significant particles in the Standard Model: the theory describing the fundamental particles and forces of the universe. She spends her days studying Higgs boson decays — how the particle transforms into other particles after being produced in high-energy collisions — helping researchers search for physics beyond the Standard Model and deepen our understanding of the fundamental laws governing the universe.

“We are laying a very small stone in trying to understand how the universe was built, which is something I have always been curious about,” she shared.

Working at the lab, Younes runs large-scale computational simulations and analyzes data to study Higgs boson decays for future collider experiments. The research is designed for the proposed Circular Electron Positron Collider, one of the world's most ambitious next-generation particle accelerator projects planned for construction in China. The collider aims to provide scientists with new opportunities to study fundamental particles, including the Higgs boson, with extreme precision.

Spending the summer in Beijing means that Younes not only engages with one of the most important facilities in particle physics, but also meets and networks with top physicists from the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), who work on the project.

“Particle physics is an amazing international community,” Younes explained. “It has connected me with so many parts of the world. Coming to Beijing gave me the chance to see firsthand the hardware I am simulating because the research is focused on the Chinese Circular Electron Positron Collider.”

After completing her summer in Beijing, Younes hopes to continue working with the international particle physics community. “I really want to work at CERN. I plan to do a master’s or PhD in the field because the particle physics community is so internationally rich. There are so many cultures and backgrounds, and so many research projects going on.”

Returning to AUC this fall for her senior year, Younes will have gained the skills to work in a professional scientific environment, as well as the confidence that comes from moving to a new country and adapting to a new culture. While there were many differences between China and Egypt, she was still able to find her place among her new colleagues, united by their shared passion.

“The skills I gained from this experience were life changing,” she expressed. “There were small things like renting my own apartment to big things like navigating a new work culture. It's going to reflect on how I perceive my own life and decisions because, at some point, I packed my bags and went to Beijing without knowing anything, which gave me a push toward taking more risks. I will be doing the same at AUC as well. It's going to reflect on my research projects and the internships I seek. This opportunity gave me a whole different perspective on my career journey.”