Rainer Wallny

Prof. Rainer Wallny is a Full Professor of Physics at ETH Zurich and Head of the Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics. His research focuses on high-energy particle physics, particularly through the CMS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), emphasizing Higgs boson studies and detector upgrades. He leads projects on Higgs boson characterization in photon and b-quark final states, as well as CMS pixel detector upgrades for Phase-2. His group also explores future collider technologies and contributes to teaching at all academic levels.

Education:

• Studied Physics at Universities of Tübingen, Washington (M.Sc., 1994), and Heidelberg (Diplom, 1996)
• PhD in Physics from University of Zurich
• CERN Research Fellow (2001–2003)
• Faculty at UCLA (2003–2010), promoted to Full Professor in 2010
• Joined ETH Zurich as Full Professor in 2010

Research Interests:

• Higgs boson properties and decay channels
• Supersymmetry searches in CMS data
• Detector development for CMS (pixel trackers, diamond sensors)
• Phase-2 LHC upgrade technologies
• Experimental particle physics at high-luminosity colliders

Grants and Advising:

• Supervised over 20 PhD students since 2010
• Leadership roles in CMS collaboration and detector R&D initiatives
• Active in curriculum design for physics education at ETH

Labs & Teams:

• Wallny Group at ETH Zurich
• Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics (D-PHYS)
• Collaborations with CERN and global CMS teams