HEPAP White Paper on planning for U.S. high-energy physics [High Energy Physics Advisory Panel]

High-energy physicists seek to understand what the universe is made of, how it works, and where it has come from. They investigate the most basic particles and the forces between them. Experiments and theoretical insights over the past several decades have made it possible to see the deep connection between apparently unrelated phenomena, and to piece together more of the story of how a rich and complex cosmos could evolve from just a few kinds of elementary particles. The 1998 Subpanel of the High Energy Physics Advisory Panel (HEPAP) laid out a strategy for U.S. high-energy physics for the next decade. That strategy balanced exciting near-term opportunities with preparations for the most important discovery possibilities in the longer-term. Difficult choices were made to end several highly productive programs and to reduce others. This year HEPAP was charged to take the plan given in the Subpanel's report, understand it in the context of worldwide progress, and update it. In response to that charge, this White Paper provides an assessment of where we stand, states the next steps to take in the intermediate term, and serves as input for a longer range planning process involving a new HEPAP subpanel and high-energy physics community evaluation in 2001. Since the 1998 Subpanel, there have been important developments and a number of the Subpanel's recommendations have been implemented. Notably, construction of the B-factory at SLAC, the Main Injector at Fermilab, and the upgrade of CESR at Cornell have all been finished on schedule and on budget. We have gained great confidence in the performance of these accelerators and the associated detectors. The B-factory at SLAC is already operating above design luminosity and plans are in place to reach three times the design in the next few years. In addition, there have been major physics developments that lead us to believe that these completed projects are guaranteed to produce frontier physics results and have an enhanced potential for a truly major breakthrough. However, taking advantage of these facilities requires greater funding for operations than the significantly reduced level of the last several years