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Freya Blekman
CMS experiment at the LHC
Freya Blekman’s research interests include the search for signs of new physics using the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN and future colliders. Her focus is on the detection of new physics using precision measurements and direct searches, looking predominantly at the top quark sector. She works in the CMS and FCC-ee collaborations, where she is active in top-quark physics and the search for new particles that decay to top quarks.
Blekman has led many large international research teams at CERN and CMS, e.g. as first Physics Communications Officer in charge of the start of the physics outreach activities of the CMS collaboration and as the first Convener of the “Beyond-Two-Generations” (B2G) physics group, a dedicated physics analysis group focusing on using heavy quarks and W/Z/H bosons to search for new particles.
Blekman regularly appears in various media and is very active on X with her feed aimed at the technically inclined general public.
Academic career
| Since 2021 | Lead Scientist at DESY with joint appointment with the University of Hamburg through the Helmholtz Distinguished Professor Recruitment Initiative |
| Since 2019 | Visiting Professor, University of Oxford |
| 2019-2021 | Full Professor (Hoogleraar), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, CMS experiment |
| 2014-2018 | Associate Professor (Universitair Hoofddocent), Vrije Universiteit Brussel |
| 2010-2014 | Assistant Professor (Universitair Docent), Vrije Universiteit Brussel |
| 2007-2010 | Research Associate, Cornell University |
| 2005 | PhD, University of Amsterdam (Nikhef) |
| 2000 | MSc, University of Amsterdam (Nikhef) |
Awards, memberships and roles
| 2021 | Helmholtz Distinguished Professorship |
| 2019, 2020 | LHC Physics Centre Distinguished Researcher (Senior) |
| 2016 | “Jaarprijs Science Communication” of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for the Arts and Sciences (KVAB) for the promotion of particle physics on social media, particularly Twitter (X) and YouTube |
| 2013 | LHC Physics Centre Distinguished Researcher |
| 2012 | Odysseus II Grant by the Flemish funding agency FWO |
| 1999 | CERN summer student programme |
| Chair of ATLAS-Canada Standing Review Committee, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) | |
| IPPP Durham Advisory Board, UK | |
| Member of the Physics Coordination Team of the CMS collaboration since 2018 and 2012-2014 | |
| Member and Chair of physics or interdisciplinary peer review panels in Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal and Sweden | |
| Member of Academianet of Excellent Female Research Leaders since 2017 | |
| Member of the German Physical Society, Institute of Physics (UK), Belgian and Dutch Physical Societies |
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