Tejinder Singh Virdee

Sir Tejinder Singh Virdee FRS is a Kenyan-born British experimental particle physicist and Professor of Physics at Imperial College London. He is renowned as one of the founding fathers of the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment at CERN's Large Hadron Collider, having originated its concept in 1990 and serving as its project leader (Spokesperson) from 2007-2010.

Education:

• B.Sc. in Physics, Queen Mary College, University of London (1974)
• Ph.D. in Physics, Imperial College London (1979)

Research Interests: Sir Tejinder's research spans experimental high energy physics, with particular focus on particle detector development, calorimetry techniques, and the search for new physics at the TeV scale. His work has been instrumental in the discovery of the Higgs boson through the CMS experiment at the LHC.

His research contributions include pioneering work on lead tungstate scintillating crystals for the CMS electromagnetic calorimeter, innovative light collection techniques for hadron calorimetry, and leadership in the design and construction of one of the most complex scientific instruments ever built.

Scientific Awards:

• Royal Medal (2024) - Royal Society
• Panofsky Prize (2017) - American Physical Society
• Glazebrook Medal and Prize (2015) - Institute of Physics
• Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics (2013)
• European Physical Society High Energy Physics Prize (2013)
• Chadwick Medal and Prize (2009) - Institute of Physics
• Knight Bachelor (2014) - Queen's Birthday Honours

Leadership and Outreach: Beyond his scientific achievements, Sir Tejinder has served on numerous international scientific advisory committees and is actively involved in promoting science education, particularly in Africa and India. He has delivered numerous keynote lectures and public talks worldwide, including the Schrödinger Lecture and Peter Lindsay Lectures at Imperial College.

He currently leads efforts to upgrade the CMS detector for the High-Luminosity LHC era, focusing on novel silicon-based calorimeter technologies to achieve unprecedented precision in particle measurements.