Mauricio Barbi

Office: +1 306 585-4260 · barbi(at)uregina.ca

Full Professor · University of Regina · Department of Physics · 3737 Wascana Parkway · Regina, Saskatchewan · S4S 0A2 · Canada

I am a faculty member of the University of Regina since 2004. My research focuses on projects on the long baseline neutrino oscillation experiment(T2K), the next generation large-scale water Cherenkov detector(Hyper-K), Intermediate Water Cherenkov Detector(IWCD) and HALO-1kT supernova neutrino detector. Since 2012 I started to collaborate with palaeontologists by developing studies using synchrotron radiation-based techniques. Currently I am developing studies with members of the Royal Tyrrell Museum for soft tissue preservation and the Royal Saskatchewan Museum with amber inclusions and chemical signatures in vertebrate paleontology.

In 2016 I shared with the T2K collaboration the Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics: for the fundamental discovery of neutrino oscillations, revealing a new frontier beyond, and possible far beyond, the standard model of particle physics. Prize Website


Current Projects

· Synchrotron Radiation Applied to Paleontology Canandian Project

Development of scientific research using synchrotron radiation and other techniques to study fossils (mainly dinosaurs), with emphasis to those from the Late Cretaceous period. Canadian Light Source Website

· Hyper-Kamiokande Collaboration Japonese Project

R&D next generation of neutrino experiments - developement of an optical system for the readout of the projected Hyper-Kamiokande detector which is expected to succeed the current Super-Kamiokande detector, and also for the IWCD detector, a new detector concept which is part of the Hyper-K project. Development of a scintillator system and its optical readout to identify particle in the IWCD. Tests of several electronic components and photosensors for the IWCD HyperK Website

· Intermediate Water Cherenkov Detector (IWCD) Japonese Project

Development of a scintillator detector system for the IWCD. This experiment consists of a Water Cherenkov Detector that will be located at 1.1 Km from the neutrino beam production location, allowing for studies of the neutrino flux before it oscillate into a different neutrino flavour. It will also be movable vertically, allowing the measurement of the neutrino flux at different off-axis angles relative to the neutrino beam direction (center). This technique will greatly help with systematic uncertainties in neutrino oscillation measurements as it will lead to a model-independent extrapolation of the neutrino flux from the intermediate (IWCD) to the far detector (Hyper-K) detector, allowing a more significant measurement of the neutrino oscillation parameters. components and photosensors for the IWCD HyperK Website

· EMPHATIC Canandian Project

Development a mirror system to be implemented as part of the Aerogel Cherenkov Detector for particle identification in the EMPHATIC experiment to study hadronic production in proton-target interactions. The target will be similar to those to be used to produced neutrino beams for the Hyper-K experiment in Japan, and will help to better understand and control systematic uncertainties arising from modelling of hadronic production used to study neutrino oscillations. EMPHATIC paper

· HALO-1kT Italian Project

Halo-1kT is a project of a supernova detector proposed to be installed at Gran Sasso, Italy. Its main goal is to detect neutrino bursts from supernova explosions in our Galaxy to better understand the supernova process. Halo Website

· Tokai-to-Kamioka (T2K) Experiment Japonese Project

I am the leader of the Fine Grained Detector Wavelength Shifting Fiber Work-Package, member of the T2K International Board of Members, Member of the T2K Speaker Board and Chair of one of the T2K paper Review Committees. I led the work to develop the wavelength shifting (WLS) fibers and their related optical coupling system which was installed in the Fine Grained Detector (FGD) of the ND280 component of the T2K experiment and also developed (with my students) the particle identification (PID) algorithm for the FGD detector. T2K Website


Past Projects

I was involved in the GlueX Collaboration until the first half of 2006. In GlueX, I played a leading role in tests using silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) and in establishing the first version of the GlueX-Barrel Calorimeter reconstruction code.

I was also a member of the CALICE Collaboration to build the calorimetric system for the International Linear Collider (ILC).

Member of ZEUS Collaboration at DESY for six years (1999 to 2004), during this period I took on several key responsibilities as ZEUS Uranium Scintillator Calorimeter (UCAL) DQM Coordinator and then general UCAL Coordinator, Forward Neutron Calorimeter and Forward Neutron Tracker Coordinator, ZEUS Run Coordinator among other important activities.

I obtained my Ph.D. degree working at CERN on the DELPHI Collaboration (LEP) where I was responsible for the hardware implementation and tests of the Synchroton Radiation Detector (SRD).


Available Positions

We currently have a PostDoc position available in Experimental Neutrino Physics.

Click here for more details.

Academic Activities

Supervisions (Completed and Undergoing):
14 Bachelor's
20 Bachelor's Honours
9 Master's Thesis
5 Doctorate
3 Post-Doctorate

UofR Institutional Member in the Institute of Particle Physics 2011 - 2030
UofR Science Graduate Study Scholarship Committee · 2015 - 2020
UofR Science Safety Committee · 2015 - 2019
UofR 3rd and 4th Year Lab Committee · 2005 - 2030
UofR Faculty Review Committee · 2016 - 2018
UofR Faculty of Science Criteria Document Review Committee · 2016 - 2017
UofR Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research Council · 2015 - 2017
UofR Science Student Appeal Committee · 2007 - 2017
UofR Physics Faculty Position Search Committee · 2014 - 2015
UofR Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research PhD Committee · 2012 -2014
UofR International Office Faculty Advisory Committee · 2012 - 2013
UofR Representative to the Canadian Institute of Particle Physics · 2012 - 2030
UofR Physics Graduate Proggram Coordinator · 2014 - 2018
UofR Physics Department Seminar Coordinator · 2012 - 2018
UofR Coordinator of the Physics Co-op Liason Program · 2008 - 2015

Board Representative in the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute · 2006 - 2030
TRIUMF Policy and Planning Advisory Committee PPAC · 2007 - 2015
Prairie Universities Physics Seminar Series (PUPSS) Coordinator · 2013 - 2018
T2K Review Committee · 2013 - 2017
T2K Paper Review Committee · 2013 - 2015
Reviwer of Journal of the Royal Society Interface · 2013 - 2017


Scientific Production

I have more than 200 scientific papers published adding up more than 16,000 citations.

For a list of my publications one can check my Google Citations Profile.

There is also a list of my publications related to high energy physics at INSPIRE.


News and Media

· Rare dinosaur skin sheds light on evolution of prehistoric monsters ⦿ CTV News
· CLS Shines a Light on Dinosaur Skin ⦿ 600 CJWW
· Canadian Light Source at the U of S analyze fossilized dinosaur tissue ⦿ 650CKOM
· Images of the long-gone past ⦿ Saskatoon StarPhoenix News
· U of R scientists among winners of major physics award ⦿ Regina Leader-Post
· Dinosaur discovery 'a dream come true' for U of R physics professor ⦿ CBC News
· Découverte d'une peau de dinosaure de 72 millions d'années ⦿ ICI Radio-Canada
· Physicists to Shoot Extremely Fast-Moving Electrons at Dinosaur Skin Fossil ⦿ Smithsonian Magazine
· Rare dinosaur skin offers insights into evolution ⦿ lightsources.org
· T. Rex at 20: How ‘Jurassic Park’ science has evolved ⦿ The Washington Post
· What Color Was Dinosaur Skin? ⦿ SourceFed Youtube
· Sychrotron gives U of R prof deeper look inside bones ⦿ CTV News
· Scientists study rare dinosaur skin fossil to determine skin colour for first time ⦿ Phys.org
· Rare dinosaur fossil studied at Canadian Light Source ⦿ Global News
· What Color Were Dinosaurs? Test Of Ancient Skin Sample Will Reveal Final Answer ⦿ Nature World News
· Dinosaur discovery 'a dream come true' for U of R physics professor ⦿ Yahoo! News
· CLS Shines a Light on Dinosaur Skin ⦿ 92.9 The Bull
· Dinosaur Research Goes High Tech ⦿ Regina Leader-Post
· Researcher Mauricio Barbi with a piece of dinosaur skin ⦿ Vancouver Sun
· Synchrotron helping shed light on Scotty ⦿ Canadian government Executive
· Canadian research sheds new light on dinosaurs ⦿ The Globe and Mail
· Le synchrotron de Saskatoon jette une lumière sur la vie des dinosaures ⦿ ICI Radio-Canada
· Prof digs deeper into old dinosaur bones ⦿ The Hamilton Spectator

Produced by Bruno Ferrazzi