Nuclear, Particle and Astrophysics
Jean-Côme Lanfranchi from the Cluster of Excellence "Universe" prepares a cylindrically formed detector crystal for a test. At the left, the cryostat that can cool the crystal down to ten millikelvin. Foto: TUM/Heddergott. The origin and structure of matter in the universe together with the role played by the different interactions and symmetries in the development of the universe from the Big Bang up to the still ongoing production of heavy elements in stars and in star explosions are matter of investigation within this research area. From a theoretical point of view the electromagnetic, weak and strong forces can be described within quantum field theory but this leaves out the gravitational force. For this reason one of the objectives of the ongoing research is a common description of all fundamental forces within the same model.
Spokesperson of the research area KTA is Laura Fabbietti.
Elementary Particle Physics
Interaction of a pion beam (from the left) within a bubble chamber filled with hydrogen. Foto: CERN. The question about the nature of the fundamental building blocks that compose our world was already debated by our ancestors. Modern experiments have allowed us to look deeper and deeper into the structure of matter and to identify smaller and smaller matter constituents. With experiments at the largest accelerators worldwide, like today at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN in Geneva, it is possible to produce the most elementary particles and to study their properties. Indeed, precision experiments can measure known particles and their symmetries and the experimental results can on the one hand be compared to the theoretical predictions by the Standard model of particles on the one hand, that provides a common framework for all existing particles, their interactions and the underlying symmetries and on the other hand test new theoretical predictions beyond the Standard models by looking to new particles or unexpected deviations in precision measurements.
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Research groups: Beneke - Fierlinger - Garbrecht - Ibarra - Oberauer - Ratz - Resconi - Schönert
Investigating solar neutrinos: the Borexino experiment at Gran Sasso, Italy. Foto: Henning Back/Virginia Tech. Astroparticle physics represents the gateway between astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology and Nuclear- and particle physics and deals with the links between the big structures in the universe and the smallest building blocks of matter, the forces between them and the underlying symmetries. From astronomical observations we know today that the visible form of matter constitutes only a quarter of the total amount of matter and only 5% of the total energy density in the universe and we are still searching for the particles that compose the so-called dark matter. The properties of neutrinos are also subject of investigation within astroparticle physics. In particular, we would like to study how neutrinos produced in stars change their character while travelling to the earth and possibly transform into their antiparticles, as the role played by neutrinos in stellar explosions and in the central core of earth.
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Nuclear and Particle Physics
Research groups: Brambilla - Bishop - Fabbietti - Kaiser - Paul
Hadrons as protons and neutrons are composed out of quarks that interact by means of gluons. We know that the strong interacting hadrons, among which the best known are protons and neutrons, are composed of more elementary building blocks that are interacting and also kept together by Gluons. We want to understand in detail why the proton is 50 times heavier than the sum of its buildings blocks or how the spin of the proton results from the dynamic of its constituents. Also the interaction between neutrons and protons within atomic nuclei and how this is linked to the properties of the elementary building blocks and which role the different atomic nuclei played in the formation of the heaviest elements in the universe is matter of study in this branch of physics. Heavy ion collisions at the accelerators help studying the hadron properties with different quark contents and also how these interact within dense and hot nuclear matter. One can even recreate a plasma of free quarks and gluons as probably it was the case shortly after the Big Bang.
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Applications in Medicine, Biology and Material Science
The Positron-Emission-Tomography (PET) displays regions with larger metabolic activity (lighter spots). Many technological development from fundamental research within KTA have found applications in the every-day life or in other research areas. This is the reason why many different diagnostic methods in medicine, like MRI and PET are by-products of the KTA research. Today photon, ion and neutron beams are regularly used to treat tumors. Modern research in the field of the medical diagnostic based on the very modern detector technology and that utilize ion and neutron beams for application in biophysics and for the study of different materials are further example of these kind of applications.
Nyuklia, Chembe na Astrophysics Jean-Côme Lanfranchi kutoka Cluster ya Excellence "Universe" huandaa kioo cha detector kilichoundwa kwa silinda kwa ajili ya mtihani. Upande wa kushoto, cryostat ambayo inaweza baridi kioo chini ya kumi millikelvin. Picha: TUM-Heddergott Asili na muundo wa vitu katika ulimwengu pamoja na jukumu la mwingiliano tofauti na ulinganifu katika maendeleo ya ulimwengu kutoka Big Bang hadi uzalishaji wa sasa wa vitu vizito katika nyota na katika milipuko ya nyota ni suala la uchunguzi ndani ya eneo hili la utafiti. Kwa mtazamo wa kinadharia, nguvu za umeme, dhaifu na nguvu zinaweza kuelezwa ndani ya nadharia ya uwanja wa quantum lakini hii huacha nguvu ya mvuto. Kwa sababu hii moja ya malengo ya utafiti unaoendelea ni maelezo ya kawaida ya nguvu zote za msingi ndani ya mfano huo huo. Msemaji wa eneo la utafiti KTA ni Laura Fabbietti. Elementary Particle Physics Maingiliano ya mhimili wa pion (kutoka kushoto) ndani ya chumba cha Bubble kilichojaa hidrojeni. Picha: CERN. Swali kuhusu asili ya vipande vya msingi vinavyofanyiza ulimwengu wetu tayari lilizungumziwa na mababu zetu. Majaribio ya kisasa yameturuhusu kuchunguza kwa undani zaidi na zaidi muundo wa vitu na kutambua vitu vidogo zaidi na vidogo zaidi vinavyofanyiza vitu. Kwa kutumia vifaa vya kuharakisha, kama vile LHC (Large Hadron Collider) ya CERN, tunaweza kuchanganua chembe za msingi na kugundua sifa zao. Kwa kweli, majaribio ya usahihi yanaweza kupima chembe zinazojulikana na symmetries zao, na matokeo ya majaribio yanaweza kulinganishwa na utabiri wa nadharia na mfano wa kawaida wa chembe, ambayo hutoa mfumo wa kawaida kwa chembe zote zilizopo, mwingiliano wao na symmetries ya msingi, na kwa upande mwingine, kujaribu utabiri mpya wa nadharia zaidi ya mifano ya kawaida kwa kuangalia chembe mpya au kupotoka kwa usahihi. Soma zaidi kuhusuElementary Particle Physics Vikundi vya Utafiti: Beneke - Fierlinger - Garbrecht - Ibarra - Oberauer - Ratz - Resconi - Schönert Kuchunguza neutrinos za jua: jaribio la Borexino huko Gran Sasso, Italia. Picha: Henning Back/Virginia Tech. Astrophysics ni njia ya kati kati kati ya elimu ya nyota, astrophysics, cosmology na nyuklia na chembe za fizikia na inahusika na uhusiano kati ya miundo kubwa katika ulimwengu na ndogo ya ujenzi vitalu ya mambo, nguvu kati yao na symmetries msingi. "Kwa mujibu wa uchunguzi wa nyota, ""umbo la kibiolojia linaloonekana linajumuisha robo tu ya jumla ya vitu vyote na asilimia tano tu ya jumla ya nishati katika ulimwengu, na bado tunatafuta chembechembe zinazotengeneza kile kinachoitwa ""dark matter.""" Sifa za neutrino pia ni mada ya uchunguzi ndani ya fizikia ya astroparticle. "Hasa, tungependa kujifunza jinsi neutrino zinazozalishwa katika nyota hubadilisha tabia zao wakati wa kusafiri kwenda duniani na uwezekano wa kubadilika kuwa antiparticles zao, kama jukumu la neutrino katika milipuko ya nyota na katika kiini cha kati cha dunia. """ "Kama ilivyoelezwa katika makala ya ""Nuclear Physics and Particle Physics: Brambilla, Bishop, Fabbietti, Kaiser, Paul, and Hadron,"" ""Hadron"" ni chembe za nyuklia ambazo zinaunganishwa na nyuklia." Hadroni zenye nguvu, ambazo zinajulikana zaidi kama protoni na neutroni, zinajumuisha vipande vya msingi vya muundo vinavyoingiliana na pia huhifadhiwa pamoja na gluoni. "Tunataka kuelewa kwa undani kwa nini protoni ni nzito mara 50 kuliko jumla ya vipande vyake vya ujenzi au jinsi mzunguko wa protoni unavyotokana na nguvu za vipande vyake.""" "Kama vile mwingiliano kati ya neutroni na protoni ndani ya nyuklia ya atomu na jinsi hii inahusiana na mali ya ""blocks za ujenzi"" za msingi na ni jukumu gani nyuklia tofauti za atomu zilicheza katika kuunda vitu vizito zaidi katika ulimwengu ni suala la utafiti katika tawi hili la fizikia." Mshtuko mkubwa wa ioni katika accelerators husaidia kusoma mali ya hadron na maudhui tofauti ya quark na pia jinsi hizi zinavyoingiliana ndani ya nyuklia nzito na moto. Pia, plasma ya quarks na gluons inaweza kuundwa tena, kama ilivyokuwa baada ya Big Bang. Kwa mfano, katika utafiti wa maumbile ya nyuklia na nyuklia katika sayansi ya nyuklia, sayansi ya nyuklia na sayansi ya nyuklia, teknolojia ya Positron Emission Tomography (PET) inaonyesha maeneo yenye shughuli kubwa za kimetaboliki. Maendeleo mengi ya kiteknolojia kutoka kwa utafiti wa msingi ndani ya KTA yamepata matumizi katika maisha ya kila siku au katika maeneo mengine ya utafiti. Kwa sababu hii, mbinu nyingi za utambuzi katika dawa, kama vile MRI na PET, ni bidhaa za utafiti wa KTA. Leo miale ya fotoni, ioni, na neutroni hutumiwa kwa ukawaida kutibu uvimbe. Utafiti wa kisasa katika uwanja wa utambuzi wa matibabu unaotegemea teknolojia ya kisasa ya detector na ambayo hutumia miale ya ioni na neutroni kwa matumizi katika biofizikia na kwa utafiti wa vifaa tofauti ni mfano zaidi wa aina hizi za matumizi.