WOW Physics!

9 Nov 2022, 14:00 → 11 Nov 2022, 19:15 Europe/Zurich

Laura Sagunski (chair), Alberica Toia (Goethe University Frankfurt (DE)), Camilla Juul Hansen, Elena Bratkovskaya, Falko Pientka, Francesca Cuteri (Goethe Universität), Kristin Kliemt, Luciano Rezzolla (Goethe University Frankfurt), Marcus Bleicher (Goethe University Frankfurt), Phyllis Mania, Roser Valenti, Tamara Caldas Cifuentes (Goethe University Frankfurt)

The first international online conference

WOW Physics! (Women Of the World in Physics!)

will take place from Nov 9 to 11, 2022 and will be hosted by Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany.

WOW Physics! will honor inspiring women in physics and celebrate their outstanding contributions in science. The conference will gather physicists from all over the world and all stages of their careers who work on theoretical and experimental aspects of:

• Astrophysics
• Atomic, molecular and optical physics
• Biophysics
• Condensed matter physics
• Heavy-ion physics
• Geophysics
• Particle physics

Confirmed plenary speakers are:

• Prof. Dr. Barbara Jacak (UC Berkeley)
• Prof. Dr. Barbara Romanowicz (UC Berkeley and Collège de France)
• Prof. Dr. Christiane Koch (Free University of Berlin)
• Prof. Dr. Claudia Felser (director of the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids)
• Prof. Dr. Dorothée Weber-Bruls (first female president of the Physical Society ("Physikalischer Verein") Frankfurt; patent attorney at Jones Day)
• Prof. Dr. Heather Lewandowski (University of Colorado Boulder)
• Prof. Dr. Irina Artemieva (GEOMAR Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel)
• Prof. Dr. Johanna Stachel (Heidelberg University; recipient of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany)
• Prof. Dr. Kandice Tanner (U.S. National Cancer Institute)
• Prof. Dr. Laura H. Greene (Florida State University and U.S. National High Magnetic Field Laboratory; member of the U.S. President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology)
• Prof. Dr. Lorin Swint Matthews (Baylor University)
• Prof. Dr. Margaret Gardel (University of Chicago)
• Dr. Maria Lugaro (Konkoly Observatory)
• Prof. Dr. Melissa Franklin (Harvard University; co-discoverer of the top-quark)
• Prof. Dr. Nandini Trivedi (Ohio State University)
• Dr. Pranoti Kshirsagar (The Science Talk)
• Prof. Dr. Samaya Nissanke (GRAPPA Amsterdam)

 

There will be a round table with the plenary speakers to discuss their career paths, the hurdles they had to overcome at different stages of their career and how they managed to do so. The round table will be moderated by 

• Dr. Jessica Wade (Imperial College London).
   

Registration is free and will remain open until Tuesday, Nov 8, 2022.

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Rewatch the whole conference on our YouTube channel "DMGW @ Goethe-University": https://www.youtube.com/@dmgw_goetheuniversitaet/streams

WOW_Physics_Poster.pdf

Wednesday 9 November

Welcome: Prof. Dr. Laura Sagunski (chair of the local organizing committee at Goethe University)

Welcome: Bettina Stark-Watzinger (German Federal Minister of Education and Research)

WOW Physics.mp4

Welcome: Angela Dorn (Hessian State Minister for Science and the Arts)

Grußwort Angela Dorn_WOW Physics mit UT.mp4

Welcome: Prof. Dr. Enrico Schleiff (president of Goethe University)

Welcome: Prof. Dr. Roger Erb (dean of the Department of Physics of Goethe University)

Welcome: Niloofar Jokar, Marisol Castellanos, Soe Gon Yee Thant (representatives of the International Association of Physics Students – IAPS)

14:35 Break

Condensed matter physics: Prof. Dr. Nandini Trivedi (Ohio State University), "The strange world of fractionalized quantum numbers in quantum matter" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Roser Valentí

Prof. Dr. Nandini Trivedi (Ohio State University), "The strange world of fractionalized quantum numbers in quantum matter"

I will describe the fascinating story of emergence in quantum matter-- the fact that the properties of a collective can be very different from those of the individual constituents. For example, we think of an electron as a fundamental particle with charge e and spin ℏ/2. And yet in a system with many interacting electrons new states with fractionalized charge e/3 can emerge. These fractionalized particles can have exchange statistics that are different from the usual fermions and bosons. Fractionalized particles are proving to be important as topological qubits that are protected from decoherence by the environment and have unique potential to encode information in quantum computers.

Atomic, molecular and optical physics: Prof. Dr. Christiane Koch (Free University of Berlin), "What chiral molecules can teach us about quantum control" | Chair of the session: Dr. Kristin Kliemt

Prof. Dr. Christiane Koch (Free University of Berlin), "What chiral molecules can teach us about quantum control"

Molecular chirality -- the fact that a chiral molecule cannot be
superimposed with its mirror image by rotations and translations -- is as
ubiquitous as it is intriguing. The left-handed and right-handed versions
of a chiral molecule share almost all of their physical properties. Yet,
the chemical and biological behavior of the two enantiomers typically
differs dramatically. Detection of chirality and the ability to separate
enantiomers, therefore, play a central role across the natural sciences.
As physicists, we would ideally like to use electromagnetic fields to this
end. When exciting chiral molecules with electric fields, chirality can
be detected via vector observables. I will discuss how quantum control,
i.e., the constructive and destructive interference between different
excitation pathways, allows for enhancing chiral vector observables, all
the way to complete enanantiomer-selective excitation.

16:20 Break

Biophysics: Prof. Dr. Kandice Tanner (U.S. National Cancer Institute) | Chair of the session: Dr. Kristin Kliemt

Heavy-ion physics: Prof. Dr. Johanna Stachel (Heidelberg University), "Exploring the phase diagram of strongly interacting matter with collisions of nuclei at the LHC" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Elena Bratkovskaya

Prof. Dr. Johanna Stachel (Heidelberg University), "Exploring the phase diagram of strongly interacting matter with collisions of nuclei at the LHC"

The theory of strong interaction, quantum-chromo-dynamics,
predicts for high temperature and density a new state of matter in
which the confinement of quarks and gluons is lifted. This state, the
quark-gluon-plasma, existed in the early universe after the
electro-weak phase transition up to about 10 microseconds. Results
from lattice QCD on the phase diagram will be presented. In the past
35 years accelerator-based experiments have been conducted in order to
recreate this state of matter for a short time. The ideal tool are
collisions of heavy nuclei at energies as high as possible. With the
Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN an entirely new energy regime
became accessible.

Two aspects of the data will be explored: (i) Experimental knowledge
about the phase boundary between ordinary hadronic matter and the
quark-gluon plasma: This is based on the measured yields of various
hadronic species. Here a direct link can be made the the full
statistical operator of QCD including it's fluctuations. (ii)
Evidence for deconfinement: This comes from the production of
charmonia as a function of center of mass energy and centrality of the
collision. The LHC data offer a unique signature.

17:50 Break

Condensed matter physics: Prof. Dr. Claudia Felser (Director, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids) | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Roser Valentí

Thursday 10 November

Beyond academia: Dr. Pranoti Kshirsagar (The Science Talk), "Build your brand on Twitter with The Science Talk" | Chair of the session: Dr. Phyllis Mania

Dr. Pranoti Kshirsagar (The Science Talk), "Build your brand on Twitter with The Science Talk"

Writing research grants, manuscripts, administrative work, data analysis, planning next experiment and lots of other tasks take up most of your time as a scientist leaving no space for engaging with your followers in the digital world. In this session you will learn how to cultivate an effective mindset for content creation. With the tools shared in this talk, you will be able to get the most Twitter.

Beyond academia: Prof. Dr. Dorothée Weber-Bruls (Physics Society "Physikalischer Verein" Frankfurt am Main & Jones Day), "Curiosity and Serendipity - A Journey beyond Academia" | Chair of the session: Dr. Phyllis Mania

Prof. Dr. Dorothée Weber-Bruls (Physics Society "Physikalischer Verein" Frankfurt am Main & Jones Day), "Curiosity and Serendipity - A Journey beyond Academia"

In principle it is well know that physics offers the base for a multitude of activities, but how has my specific path led from university to where I am today. A path doesn’t have to move along a straight line, it can have unsuspected turns and bring new beginnings, which can hardly be predicted. Only looking back at it, you can make sense of it and appreciate any redirections. My journey began after finishing my studies in 1990 and staying in the field of research for a a while, to then applying my skills in physics in the business world and finally becoming partner at Jones Day, one of the worlds largest US law firms. Now pure physics remains to be my hobby, leading to me giving weekly lectures at my Alma Marta and in 2019 becoming the first female President of the “Physikalischer Verein”, an almost 200 year old society brought to life by Goethe’s appreciation of physics. As both my daughters are also presently beginning their careers, I noticed the importance of courage. Thus, I would like to take you with me on my journey and hope to encourage you on yours.

14:50 Break

Geophysics: Prof. Dr. Irina Artemieva (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel), "Living on a living Earth" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Falko Pientka

Prof. Dr. Irina Artemieva (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel), "Living on a living Earth"

WOW2022-11-10-Artemieva-37min.mp4

Astrophysics: Prof. Dr. Samaya Nissanke (GRAPPA Amsterdam) | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Luciano Rezzolla

16:20 Break

Astrophysics: Prof. Dr. Lorin Swint Matthews (Baylor University), "Cosmic Dust Bunnies and Laboratory Dust Crystals: An introduction to dusty plasma research" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Luciano Rezzolla

Prof. Dr. Lorin Swint Matthews (Baylor University), "Cosmic Dust Bunnies and Laboratory Dust Crystals: An introduction to dusty plasma research"

Lorin Swint Matthews
Baylor University, Waco, Texas USA
E-mail: lorin_matthews@baylor.edu

Dust is everywhere. 99.99% of the matter in the universe is in the plasma state – it’s everywhere, too. What happens when dust and plasma get together?

My research is focused on dusty plasmas: tiny pieces of ice and rock a hundred times smaller than the width of a human hair, and their interaction with plasma, the glowing ionized gas that makes up 99% of our universe. The phenomena I study range from how the dust in cosmic gas clouds starts to clump together to form new planets (the formation of cosmic dust bunnies) to how these small particles can assemble themselves into incredibly ordered structures like crystals and helical strings reminiscent of the twisted helix of DNA.

While charged dust is the primary component of many beautiful astrophysical phenomena such as comet tails, planetary rings, protoplanetary disks, and noctilucent clouds, it is a problem for missions to other bodies in our solar system. The Apollo astronauts found that lunar dust can alter the thermal properties of equipment, obscure visors and instrument readouts, degrade seals, and abrade materials. The Mars Rovers stopped working when their solar panels became covered with dust.

Understanding the charging and dynamics of dust is vital to understanding our universe as well as exploring our solar system. Numerical modeling of the coupled charging and transport processes allows exploration of environments which can’t be easily reached. These models must be validated by comparing with experimental measurements. This talk will provide a brief overview of current capabilities of numerical models and their validation against both ground and space-based experiments.

Heavy-ion physics: Prof. Dr. Barbara Jacak (UC Berkeley), "Heavy Ion Physics: Interactions inside the quark gluon plasma" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Alberica Toia

Prof. Dr. Barbara Jacak (UC Berkeley), "Heavy Ion Physics: Interactions inside the quark gluon plasma"

The plasma of quarks and gluons formed in heavy ion collisions has some extraordinary properties. It flows hydrodynamically, with almost no friction. Furthermore, it is very opaque to any quark or gluon that tries to traverse it. This is due to the strength of the interactions among the particles within the plasma, which has been discovered to be an excellent example of a strongly-coupled plasma. Such plasmas are dominated by many-body interactions. In the quark gluon plasma we can study the many-body physics of the strong interaction, which has similarities to the more common electromagnetically interacting plasmas. I will discuss how we measure properties and interactions of quark gluon plasma, and how those can be understood theoretically.

17:50 Break

Particle physics: Prof. Dr. Melissa Franklin (Harvard University), "Maria and Me: Interested in long lived Particles" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Aberica Toia

Prof. Dr. Melissa Franklin (Harvard University), "Maria and Me: Interested in long lived Particles"

I will discuss the interests and work of Maria Goeppert-Mayer, the second woman to win the Nobel Prize in physics for explaining why some atoms are stable and my own interest in searching for long-lived particles that may not exist, at the Large Hadron Collider.

18:00 Break

Round table with Dr. Jessica Wade (Imperial College London), Dr. Maria Lugaro (Konkoly Observatory), Prof. Dr. Melissa Franklin (Harvard University), Prof. Dr. Laura H. Greene (Florida State University and U.S. National High Magnetic Field Laboratory), Prof. Dr. Lorin Swint Matthews (Baylor University) and Prof. Samaya Nissanke (GRAPPA Amsterdam) | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Laura Sagunski

Material information/links from the round table discussion at the WOW Physics! conference

Friday 11 November

Astrophysics: Dr. Maria Lugaro (Konkoly Observatory), "Making elements from carbon to lead in low-mass stars" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Camilla Hansen

Dr. Maria Lugaro (Konkoly Observatory), "Making elements from carbon to lead in low-mass stars"

Stars like our Sun end their lives after becoming red giants because
strong winds erode most of their mass. In the meantime, nuclear
reactions in their deep, hot layers produce a large variety chemical
elements. I will show how I model the nuclear processes than happen
inside these stars and what these processes can tell us about the
origin of matter in the Universe and the formation of the Earth.

Atomic, molecular and optical physics: Prof. Dr. Heather Lewandowski (University of Colorado Boulder), "Watching chemical reactions happen one molecule at a time" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Falko Pientka

Prof. Dr. Heather Lewandowski (University of Colorado Boulder), "Watching chemical reactions happen one molecule at a time"

Control over the quantum states of atoms and molecules can lead to a fundamentally new understanding of how these particles interact and react. This knowledge has the potential to impact our ability to probe processes in planetary atmospheres and in the interstellar medium, as well as relevant terrestrial process such as combustion.

Experimental techniques developed for control and measurement of atoms is now being used to study more and more complex molecules. We study these rich systems at low temperatures where we can trap and examine their properties for many minutes, as compared to small fractions of a second in standard experiments. Using these cold, trapped molecular ions, we investigate mechanisms of ion-molecule reactions to gain insights into the mechanisms driving these processes.

16:20 Break

Biophysics: Prof. Dr. Margaret Gardel (Horace B. Horton Professor of Physics and Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago), "Machinery of Living Matter" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Falko Pientka

Prof. Dr. Margaret Gardel (Horace B. Horton Professor of Physics and Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago), "Machinery of Living Matter"

Life is supported by integrated systems of physical and chemical machines that span from the macromolecular to ecosystem scale. Physicochemical coupling that occurs across these scales give rise to essential features of life including motion and information processing. In this talk, I introduce the rich physics of this field and will describe recent efforts to understand the design principles of the active, soft matter that control the shape and motion of living cells. In particular, in my lab we are interested in the design principles by which protein-based materials generate, relax, sense and adapt to mechanical force.

Geophysics: Prof. Dr. Barbara Romanowicz (UC Berkeley and Collège de France), "Imaging the earth's deep interior using seismic waves" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Roser Valentí

Prof. Dr. Barbara Romanowicz (UC Berkeley and Collège de France), "Imaging the earth's deep interior using seismic waves"

Barbara Romanowicz
Professor of the Graduate School, University of California, Berkeley.
and Professeur Honoraire, Collège de France, Paris

In the mid 1960's, the plate tectonics revolution brought to light the dynamic nature of the earth's interior, with rising hot molten rock forming new crust at mid-ocean ridges and cold, thickened tectonic plates returning to the mantle at so-called subduction zones. We now understand that plate motions are driven by internal currents of matter that serve to evacuate heat accumulated deep in our planet. However, the precise mechanisms by which these motions interact with plates remains somewhat elusive.
Seismic waves generated by natural earthquakes penetrate deep into the earth's interior, accelerating or decelerating as they propagate, depending on the temperature and composition of the rock masses they encounter, thus illuminating the internal structure of our planet. Forty five ago, the first global seismic tomographic models revealed the presence of two large, antipodal, structures at the base of the Earth's mantle, that had no obvious relation to surface geology or plate tectonics. With the expansion of digital, very broadband seismic networks and related on-line databases, combined with improvements in theory and computer power, the resolution of mantle elastic structure has progressively improved. I will illustrate how state-of- the-art imaging techniques allow us to track the fate of tectonic plates that dive back into the mantle beneath the Pacific "ring of fire", follow the paths of deeply rooted hot mantle plumes, as they ascend towards the surface and are expressed there in the form of hotspot volcanism (of which Hawaii and Iceland are prominent examples). I will present some of the open science questions raised by the new imaging results, and discuss technical challenges and pathways for further progress in full waveform tomography, combining tools from seismology and other geophysical disciplines.

17:50 Break

Condensed matter physics: Prof. Dr. Laura H. Greene (Florida State University and U.S. National High Magnetic Field Laboratory), "The Dark Energy of Quantum Materials" | Chair of the session: Prof. Dr. Roser Valentí

Prof. Dr. Laura H. Greene (Florida State University and U.S. National High Magnetic Field Laboratory), "The Dark Energy of Quantum Materials"

Laura H. Greene
National MagLab and Florida State University

The nearly 80-year-old correlated electron problems remain largely unsolved; with one stunning success being BCS electron-phonon mediated conventional superconductivity. There are dozens of families of superconductors that are unconventional, including the high-Tc cuprate and iron-based, and heavy fermion superconductors. Although these materials are disparate in many of their properties, some of their fundamental characteristics are strikingly similar, including their ubiquitous phase diagram, with intriguing correlated-electron (not-Fermi liquid) phases at temperatures well above the superconducting transition. These remain among the greatest unsolved problems in physics today; and I will present an analogy stressing that. I will also give a short overview of the US National MagLab and mention some of our own recent work on identifying a possible new pairing mechanism in a heavy-fermion superconductor.

18:00 Break

Closing: Prof. Dr. Laura Sagunski (Chair of the local organizing committee at Goethe University)