Experimental Astroparticle Physics - Positron Physics
CAST experiment (CERN Axion Solar Telescope) is searching for the existence of solar axions. It utilizes a superconducting magnet, 10 m long and with a 9 Tesla magnetic field. Solar axions passing through the magnetic field is possible to be transformed into photons which could be detected by proper photon detectors. CAST has already improved the experimental limits by a factor of 10 and derived a limit better than the one resulting from astrophysical considerations. CAST will continue measuring up to the year 2010.
The interaction of primary cosmic ray particles with the atmosphere generates a variety of secondary particles (muons, gammas, neutrons, neutrinos...) some of which reach the surface of the Earth and they can be measured by ground based detectors. The interaction of very high energy cosmic rays with the atmosphere generates Extensive Atmospheric Showers (EAS) of secondaries. The study of EAS is on the research front and it is performed by a world-wide network of cosmic ray detectors.