TSI Seminar

Exploring the Universe at the Highest Energies: when Particle Physics and Astronomy meet

Philipp Windischhofer

University of Chicago

Neutrinos are a very special kind of elementary particle. Initially hypothesized in an act of desperation during the early study of radioactivity and immediately declared to be "undetectable", they have since opened a unique window on our universe.

In this talk, I will explain the role of ultra-high-energy neutrinos in understanding our world at vastly different scales, from the most extreme astrophysical phenomena in remote corners of our cosmos to fundamental physics at extremely short distances. I will show how we are presently constructing the largest-ever terrestrial neutrino detector atop the Greenlandic ice sheet, and how the century-old physics of electromagnetism plays a central role in its operation. Combining ideas from particle collider instrumentation with high-performance computing, we will see what it takes to fully exploit the science potential of this unique instrument and thereby extend neutrino astronomy into the regime of the exa-electronvolt.