May 24 – June 14
Fingerprints of the Early Universe
Richard Easther, Yale University
William Kinney, University at Buffalo, SUNY
Liam McAllister, Cornell University
Hiranya Peiris*, University of Cambridge
Inflationary cosmology provides an elegant framework for understanding the overall homogeneity and isotropy of the universe, as well as the primordial perturbations that seed the formation of large-scale structure and of anisotropies in the microwave background. However, the physical mechanism underlying the accelerated expansion that drives inflation is unknown, and a vast range of possible inflationary models have been proposed over the years. The minimal "concordance cosmology" contains just two parameters that are assumed to be fixed during the inflationary era: the amplitude and spectral index of the primordial spectrum of density perturbations. The purpose of this workshop is to investigate additional "fingerprints", such as non-Gaussianity, tensor perturbations, or relics generated at the end of inflation, which could provide further constraints on the inflationary epoch (or alternatives to inflation, such as ekpyrosis). We aim to bring together 1) theoretical cosmologists interested in developing inflationary models, 2) string theorists and high energy physicists interested in constructing and understanding cosmological models in the context of well-motivated fundamental theories, and 3) astrophysicists in areas such as the CMB, large-scale structure, and gravity wave detection experiments.
May 24 – June 14
Quantum Simulation/Computation with Cold Atoms and Molecules
Advances in the field of ultracold atomic and molecular gases give us the capability to engineer a wide range of quantum systems. The possibilities are almost limitless, with real-time control over features such as lattice structure, density, temperature, level of impurities and disorder, quantum statistics, spin, dimensionality, and interactions (changing the symmetry, strength, range and sign). This workshop will be organized around the two central themes of "quantum information processing with cold atoms and molecules" and "simulation of many-body quantum systems with cold atoms and molecules". We will bring together researchers from the fields of quantum information / quantum computing, computational many body physics, hard condensed matter, and atomic, molecular and optical physics to explore how cold atom and molecule experiments can be used to solve these closely connected "hard problems.". By bringing together researchers with such diverse backgrounds, and by juxtaposing these two themes, we hope to foster new collaborations which will allow us to come to grips with the technical problems posed by carrying out experiments in this area, and to pinpoint important issues in quantum information processing and many-body physics.
May 24 – June 14
String Duals of Finite Temperature and Low-Dimensional Systems
Philip Argyres, University of Cincinnati
Mohammad Edalati*, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Rob Leigh,
University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign
The AdS/CFT correspondence and its developments provide tools for studying dynamics in strongly-coupled systems where conventional purely field theoretic methods often fail. The past few years have seen exciting extensions and applications of the AdS/CFT correspondence to string duals of non-equilibrium processes in systems at finite temperature and chemical potential, of phase transitions in gauge theories with matter or impurities, and of strongly-coupled low-dimensional fixed point theories. These developments have served both to provide insights into the dynamics of the field theories and to sharpen the gauge-gravity dictionary. This Aspen workshop will bring together in an informal environment physicists interested in discussing and extending these developments. Some of the many topics that we expect to discuss include the properties of quarks and mesons in gauge plasmas, hydrodynamics of strongly coupled fluids, chiral symmetry breaking in QCD-like theories, and dual models of superconductivity, Quantum Hall fluids, etc.
June 14 – July 5
Wide-Fast-Deep Surveys: New Astrophysics Frontier
Tony Tyson, University of California, Davis
Zeljko Ivezic , University of Washington
Michael Strauss, Princeton University
Bob Nichol, University of Portsmouth
Josh Frieman, Fermilab
The ability to deeply and rapidly image much of the sky will have great impact in astrophysics. New technology large aperture, wide field survey telescopes coupled with powerful data processing systems, promise to open up the time domain for exploration. The goal of this workshop is to bring theorists, observers, and computational scientists together to discuss the discovery space of wide-fast-deep surveys, and to develop algorithms and observing strategies that maximize the scientific return of such a program. With billions of galaxies and stars, new ways of addressing phenomena ranging from dark energy to the formation of our Galaxy will be explored. A general discussion of what types of transient behavior are expected, or indeed possible, is essential to maximize the potential. The exploitation of wide-fast-deep surveys for unanticipated phenomena depends critically on solving technical challenges in data management and automated discovery. After a review and discussion of known and speculative phenomena and how these new surveys can probe them (weeks I and II), the workshop will then focus (weeks II and III) on optimizing the system for time-domain discovery: survey strategy, and analysis methodology requiring database and algorithm innovations.
June 14 - July 5
Neutrino Physics on Earth, in the Stars, and in the Cosmos
The remarkable progress in neutrino physics in the last decade has changed the landscape of the field. The measurements of the neutrino masses and mixing angles have had far-reaching implications, from theories beyond the Standard Model, to astrophysics and cosmology. Many key questions remain unanswered, including the mechanism behind neutrino masses and the large lepton mixing angles, whether neutrinos have other unexpected properties, what effect the neutrinos have in various astrophysical systems, etc. More information is expected to come not only from the ongoing neutrino experimental efforts, but also from a panoply of experiments ranging from the LHC to satellite-based telescopes.
Our workshop revolves around the broad issue of the interplay of neutrino physics with other ``non-neutrino'' science, emphasizing the connection to astrophysics and cosmology on one side, and to physics beyond the Standard Model on the other. We envision a diverse group of researchers with expertise in neutrino oscillation experiments and phenomenology, neutrino mass model building, leptogenesis, early universe cosmology, supernova dynamics, ultra-high energy cosmic rays, and other related topics.
June 14 - July 5
Testing General Relativity in the Cosmos
Organizers:
Rachel Bean*, Cornell UniversityGeneral relativity is very well tested in the Solar System, in measurements of the orbital decay of the binary pulsar, and in the early universe, via primordial nucleosynthesis. Understanding gravitation in the strong field limit, around black holes, neutron stars and supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies is being actively pursued with LIGO, upcoming LISA pathfinder and planned LISA missions. None of these tests, however, probes the nature of gravity on galactic and cosmic scales, indeed constraints on gravity on extra solar system scales are surprisingly few and poor. Establishing ways to test gravity at these scales is now a major scientific goal as it is vital in order to understand the nature of two dark augmentations of the minimalist cosmological picture, of baryonic matter interacting gravitationally through general relativity.
The workshop's aim is to bring together theorists and experimentalists to discuss the spectrum of new theoretical approaches to understanding gravity's role in the nature of dark energy and dark matter, and the crucial issue of how precision experiments, at solar system, galactic, extra-galactic and cosmological scales, can be designed and best utilized to directly and indirectly measure the observable signatures of these theories.
July 5 - July 26
Quantum Vortices and Fluctuations in Superconductors and Superfluids
Recent rapid advances in superconductivity and superfluidity in cuprates, pnictides, disordered films, ultracold atomic gases and related areas have led to an intense focus on our understanding of quantum fluctuations and transitions, and in particular on the physics of vortex excitations and their quantum dynamics. Many fundamental and yet unresolved issues – vortex mass and tunneling rates, the origin of dissipation, the nature of the pseudogap, vortex interactions with quasiparticles, quantum entanglement in vortex systems, quantum phases of vortices and competing magnetic states – all have been brought to the fore by a series of remarkable experimental developments, from the Nernst effect, quantum diamagnetism and dHvA oscillations in underdoped cuprates to the imbalanced fermion superfluids to the vortex structure in just-discovered pnictides. This Workshop aims for a thorough and deep examination of these main themes – in the grand Aspen tradition, kept in check by a healthy dose of prominent experimental participants.
July 5 – August 9
Beyond the Standard Model Physics at the Threshold
Marcela Carena, Fermilab
Herbi Dreiner, Bonn University. Germany
Markus Luty , University of California, Davis
Shufang Su*, University of Arizona
Particle physics is on the threshold of major advances, driven by new data from dark matter searches, high-energy colliders, and other experiments. In the summer of 2009 there will be important new data from dark matter searches, the Tevatron, and early running of the LHC. This workshop will bring together theorists working on physics beyond the standard model, and adding input from experimentalists, to assess the impact of this data for the field, and to plan for the years of particle physics data that lie ahead. Major topics of the workshop will be implications of dark matter searches for particle physics, constraints from flavor experiments on new physics, signals that may show up in Tevatron or early LHC data, and possible novel signals for physics beyond the standard model.
July 26 – August 16
Unity of String Theory
Hong Liu*, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Alexander Maloney , McGill University
Hirosi Ooguri , California Institute of Technology
One of the strengths of string theory is its power to identify surprising connections between previously unrelated areas. The AdS/CFT correspondence, for example, relates gauge theories and supergravities. The workshop, "Unity of String Theory," will bring together theorists working on different aspects of string theory to discuss diverse issues in string theory and to plan seeds for future breakthroughs.
August 9 – September 13
Correlated Behavior & Quantum Criticality in Heavy Fermion and Related System
Zachary Fisk, University of California, Irvine
Qimiao Si , Rice University
Catherine Pepin*, CEA - Saclay
Ilya Vekhter , Louisiana State University
This workshop will address the emergent collective behavior of strongly correlated electron systems. Heavy fermion metals have in recent years been serving as a testing ground for a wide range of correlated electron physics, including quantum criticality, non-Fermi liquid behavior, novel magnetism and its interplay with superconductivity. The iron pnictides have generated enormous interest since the discovery of high temperature superconductivity in these copper-free materials in early 2008. The workshop will bring together theorists and experimentalists to discuss the diverse behaviors and unifying physics in these and related quantum materials, connection between materials aspects and models, as well as a broad range of pertinent new theoretical ideas and approaches.
August 16 – September 13
Bacteria Meets Physics
Kerwyn Huang , Stanford University
Ned Wingreen*, Princeton University
Michael Laub, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Nowhere is the importance and challenge of understanding emergent physical phenomena in living cells more evident than in the study of bacteria. Dramatic progress has taken place in characterizing the cellular components of bacteria and their basic interactions. However, this reductionist characterization is generally proving inadequate for a full understanding of cellular processes, which points to the presence in cells of biophysical phenomena that emerge from the interactions of cellular components.
The workshop will focus on some of the most promising areas of collaboration between physicists and bacteriologists to address emergent phenomena, including intracellular organization and dynamics, cell-to-cell variability and noise, signaling and information processing, networks, and general design principles.
The aim of the workshop is to capitalize on an opportunity to simultaneously discover new physical phenomena and to generate quantitative predictions for the behavior of biological systems by bringing together the leading biologists working in these areas with physicists and theorists, to bridge the understanding gap between the physical parts and the biological whole.
To apply, please go to the "application" link at the top of this page. The deadline for receipt of applications is January 31, 2009. If you would like more information, please visit this web site.
August 16 – September 13
Filamentous Assemblies: Complex Ordering from Biopolymers to Nano-rods
Gregory M. Grason* , University of Massachusetts
Robijn F. Bruinsma , University of California, Los Angeles
Jennifer M. Schwarz , Syracuse University
Recent years have seen a rapid growth in the understanding of the assembly of filamentous molecules. Whether born from living cells or created by purely synthetic means, rod-like molecules share a common and rather rich range of assembly properties. Since these molecules often span the gap between the world at the nanometer and micrometer length scales, the physics of these systems involves the rich interplay of many competing effects, including thermal and driven fluctuations, orientational forces, mechanical rigidity, topological defects and friction. The purpose of this interdisciplinary workshop is to identify and explore fundamental issues of filamentous assembly common to both the biophysical and materials-oriented communities. What can biology teach a materials scientist about generating complex, dynamic and functional assemblies of self-organizing filaments? And to what extent may one use synthetic analogues of filamentous proteins to probe non-equilibrium aspects of assembly occurring living cells?