Workshops

Workshops at Physikzentrum 2016

Exercises in Astrophysics

Tutor: Dr. Dominik Elsässer (TU Dortmund, Germany)

In recent years there has been tremendous progress at the interconnection of astrophysics, particle physics and plasma physics. Amongst others, key breakthroughs have been the identification of substantial numbers of very high energy gamma-ray sources by space-borne and ground-based detectors and the detection of astrophysical very high energy neutrinos by the IceCube collaboration. This experimental achievements also pose substantial challenges for theory, especially regarding modelling potential source populations like blazar-type AGN. At the same time, long-standing riddles like the identification of the dark matter remain.
The exercises will be tailored to giving the participants the necessary means for contributing to this exciting scientific endeavour, and will consist of coursework and problem-solving sessions.

Exercises in Particle Physics

Tutor: Dr. Paolo Desiati (UW Madison, Wisconsin, USA)

In this course, the basics of particle physics will be discussed in the context of astroparticle physics. A special focus will be put on particle interactions and the development of particle showers relevant for the production of neutral secondaries as photons and neutrinos, which are tracers of the origin of cosmic rays. This type of physics will be discussed in detail at the example of air shower physics, with the Earth's atmosphere as a laboratory for particle interactions in forward direction. It is expected that the participants have a very basic knowledge about the standard model of particle physics, everything else will be introduced throughout the course.

Exercises 1 (107.0 kB)

Exercises 2 (378.4 kB)

Exercises in Plasma Physics

Tutor: Dr. Anne Stockem Novo (RU Bochum, Germany)

A basic problem in plasma-astrophysics is the transport of particles in a turbulent magnetic field. This course will cover the elementary ingredients of how to describe cosmic ray transport in astrophysical environments. In particular, the transport equation will be derived from basic principles. The concept of describing Galactic transport via the leaky box modell will be introduced as well as the models of plasma waves and collisionless shocks. By including hadronic interaction processes, it will be discussed how the general properties of diffusion can be inferred from the observation of spallation products. The general aim of these exercises is for the participants to generate a basic understanding of how the detected cosmic ray flux is sensitive to the different transport effects.

Script in Plasma Physics Script (498.3 kB)

Exercises in Plasma Physics 1 Lecture 1 (97.9 kB)

Exercises in Plasma Physics 2 Lecture 2 (83.3 kB)