The Physical Sciences Area seeks to understand the fundamental physics of the universe at scales ranging from the infinitely small, inside the world of subatomic particles and nuclei, to the infinitely large, in the structure and evolution of the universe. To tackle these two infinities, we develop cutting-edge tools and technologies, coupled with creative scientific insights, that advance scientific knowledge and ultimately benefit society.

 Compact S-filter at Bldg. 53 Engineer and intern inspecting blue tubing Solenoidal Tracker at Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider and the Time Projection Chamber, project field cage ATLAS pixel detectors in clean room December 2023 - Physics Today cover image The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) will spend five years creating a 3-D map of the universe that will help reveal the nature of the dark energy driving cosmic expansion. The project's first six months of data show slivers of the universe that represent just 1 percent of the survey's ultimate volume of space. The colors represent different types of galaxies, including nearby bright galaxies in yellow, luminous red galaxies in magenta and galaxies with supermassive black holes in turquoise. Credit: Nadieh Bremer; Source: “The Early Data Release of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument,” by DESI Collaboration et al.; 2023 (data) Arun Persaud, Deputy Program Head in Fusion Science & Ion Beam Technology, Accelerator Technology & Applied Physics (ATAP), and Thomas Schenkel, Staff Scientist, ATAP, make adjustments on the Associated Particle Imaging (API) Test Stand, located in Building 58 at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), 10/11/2023. LBNL Director's Awards - logo banner CosmoPalooza 2023 - event logo banner 5000 eyes video still