12 June 2025
NWO has awarded an ENW-M2 grant of €800.000 to Prof. Kjeld Eikema and Prof. Hendrick Bethlem of the Quantum Metrology and Laser Applications group at the VU Amsterdam.
The aim is to investigate helium atoms and ions with advanced lasers to test the fundamentals of physics and strongly improve a measurement of the charge radius of the alpha (He-4 nucleus) and helion particle (He-3 nucleus). This can then be compared to other measurements, such as those performed with exotic muonic helium ions created at particle accelerators, to look for new physics beyond the Standard Model and to improve the accuracy of the fundamental constants of nature.
Read about the other awards on the NWO website