Maurizio Spurio

Research

My research field is in experimental physics, with particular interest in high-energy physics without particle accelerators and astroparticle physics.
I have published more than 80 articles in collaboration on the most important journals of Physics (Physical Review, PRL, PRD, Nuclear Physics, Astroparticle Physiscs, Physics Letters, ...), in addition to some 20 reports contributions on conferences personally presented, published on proceedings. In 2009, I published for Springer the textbook "Particelle ed Interazioni Fondamentali".

I was member of the MACRO collaboration since the letter of intent in 1985. MACRO was a large area (~ 1000 m2), multiple purposes detector for particle physics and astrophysics, located in the Gran Sasso National Laboratory. I participated in all stages of the experiment, from design to the data analysis and production of physics results. I held the responsibility in the date reduction of events acquired and in the structure of simulated events for neutrino physics. I also firmly organized and writing programs for decoding, simulation and analysis of the data.

I contributed significantly to the major scientific result obtained by MACRO, the experimental evidence of neutrino oscillations. This mechanism involves a mass for neutrinos, with fundamental implications in Particle Physics, Astrophysics and Cosmology. I presented the results on behalf of Collaboration in many conferences.

Between 1986 and 1992 I took care of the development and calibration of a nuclear track detector. The collaboration with the Intercast Industry (Parma) was needed to obtain  industrial-scale production of a polymer with the characteristics necessary for use in experimental physics. Among the most significant of the use of this detector, is the demonstration that our CR39 is sensitive to the energy loss of non-relativistic particles, and then magnetic monopolies provided by the theories of Grand Unification. It was also used for other measurements.

Now I'm involved  in the field of neutrino astrophysics through large submarine detectors (ANTARES and NEMO, part of the KM3Net for a telescope in the Mediterranean), and the search for exotic particles in cosmic rays. We gained significant visibility in these experiments, primarily for fast simulations of atmospheric muons. I'm the leader of the group for the study of the Diffuse Neutrino flux from extragalactic sources in Antares.