Status of the MUonE experiment: An independent measurement of hadronic vacuum polarization

The anomalous magnetic moment of the muon provides a sensitive test of the completeness of the Standard Model, and recent results from the Fermilab g-2 experiment have added to the evidence of a possible discrepancy. The limiting uncertainty in the theoretical prediction for this quantity arises from the hadronic vacuum polarization (HVP) part, for which data-driven evaluations are in tension with new lattice QCD calculations. The MUonE experiment will independently determine this HVP contribution from the running of the effective electromagnetic coupling α with the squared momentum transfer t, by precisely measuring the shape of the differential cross section for muon-electron elastic scattering. A 160 GeV muon beam at CERN will collide with electrons in a set of carbon or beryllium targets, each instrumented with a silicon strip tracking detector to measure the muon and electron track angles, and an electromagnetic calorimeter will resolve ambiguities in particle identification. This talk will discuss the concept, status, and plans for the experiment.