Mark Thomson Email & Phone Number

Since 2018, I have been the Executive Chair of the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), responsible for an annual budget of about £900m. My appointment currently ends on 31 December 2024.STFC is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). Our mission is to: deliver world-class research in the areas of particle physics, astrophysics and nuclear physics; operate world-leading UK research infrastructure; and to deliver economic benefit and growth to the UK. We fund academic research, constructs and operates major research facilities at STFC's National Laboratories, including Rutherford Appleton Laboratory at Harwell and Daresbury Laboratory in the North West. We are also a key player in the innovation landscape, supporting and developing high-tech businesses within our research and innovation clusters. STFC is also responsible for major UK research infrastructure; we are currently constructing key UK sovereign assets, including the National Satellite Test Facility and the National Quantum Computing Centre.I also represent the UK on the Councils of three major intergovernmental organisations; CERN, the Square Kilometre Array Observatory and the European Spallation Source.In additional to my role in leading STFC, I am the UKRI infrastructure champion and sponsor the work on the UKRI Infrastructure Roadmap. The first project portfolio funded through the Infrastructure Fund was announced in 2022, with an investment of £480m this spending review period as part of a planned commitment of over £1.6Bn. I am also the sponsor of UKRI's work on Digital Research Infrastructure. I am a Professor of Experimental Particle Physics at the University of Cambridge (currently on secondment to BEIS). My research interests are in neutrino physics and electron-positron collider physics. My research focused on novel data analysis/pattern recognition techniques using advanced computing and machine learning. I have worked at CERN and Fermilab. Previously, I was Co-Spokesperson of the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), a collaboration of over 1000 scientists, constructing the next major global particle physics experiment in the US. In this role I was instrumental in securing the £65M investment from the UK government for LBNF/DUNE, which established the UK-US Science and Technology agreement signed by Minister Jo Johnson in 2017.My textbook, "Modern Particle Physics", aimed at final-year undergraduate students and first-year graduate students has been widely adopted in the UK and internationally.

Listed skills include Experimental Physics, Science, Latex, Research, and 6 others.