News, Opportunities and Challenges in Big Bang Nucleosynthesis [Online EuCAPT Workshop]

12 May 2025, 15:00 → 13 May 2025, 17:10 Europe/Zurich

ON Line only (CERN)

Fabrizio Rompineve (IFAE Barcelona), Josef Pradler (University of Vienna & Austrian Academy of Sciences (AT)), Maksym Ovchynnikov (CERN), Miguel Escudero Abenza (CERN)

The agreement between the predicted primordial element abundances and astrophysical observations represents a triumph of the Standard Model of Cosmology and a key test of scenarios beyond. In addition, BBN inferences on physical parameters such as the baryon density are customarily used for other cosmological analyses, such as Baryon Acoustic Oscillations.

Given the importance of Big Bang Nucleosynthesis for cosmology, in this online EuCAPT workshop we aim to bring the leading teams working on BBN to give an overview of the current status of the field and discuss news, opportunities and challenges. The workshop will consist of two separate afternoons. One for the primordial helium abundance and one for deuterium+lithium. Each afternoon will take 2 hours and the event will be fully online over zoom. Everyone is most welcome and there will be time for discussions. 

The event will take place virtually on May 12 and May 13, 15:00-17:10 CET. Please, register if you want to participate.

Topics that will be covered include:

• Astrophysical measurements of the primordial helium abundance
• CMB inferences of the of the primordial helium abundance
• BSM implications from BBN theory
• The BBN reaction network
• Theory predictions for key nuclear reaction networks
• Status of the lithium-7 problem

 

Confirmed invited speakers include:

• Erik Aver [Gonzaga University]
• Alain Coc [IJCLab, Université Paris-Saclay]
• Brian Fields [University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign]
• Laura Elisa Marcucci [University of Pisa & INFN]
• Julien Lesgourgues [RWTH Aachen U.] 
  

 

Cofirmed invited panelists include:

• Ryan Cooke [Durham University]
• Keith Olive [University of Minnesota]
• Maxim Pospelov [University of Minnesota]

 

Organized by:

Miguel Escudero [CERN]
Maksym Ovchynnikov [CERN]
Josef Pradler [U. Vienna]
Fabrizio Rompineve [IFAE, Barcelona]

 

 

Monday 12 May

15:00 → 17:10 Deuterium+Lithium-7

15:00 Welcome and Intro

15:10 The BBN nuclear reaction network: global perspective and theory uncertainties

Speaker: Alain Coc (CSNSM (Orsay))

15:40 Theoretical modeling of deuterium burning rates

Speaker: Laura Elisa Marcucci

16:10 The Lithium-7 problem

Speaker: Brian Fields (University of Illinois)

16:40 Panel Discussion

Speakers: Keith A. Olive (University of Minnesota (US)), Maxim Pospelov, Ryan Cooke

Tuesday 13 May

15:00 → 17:10 Helium-4 primordial abundance

15:00 Welcome and Intro

15:10 Helium-4 abundance measurements I [Theory]

Speaker: Erik Aver

15:40 Helium-4 abundance measurements II [Observations]

Speaker: Erik Aver

16:10 CMB determinations of the Helium-4 abundance

Speaker: Julien Lesgourgues (RWTH Aachen university)

16:40 Panel Discussion

Speakers: Keith A. Olive (University of Minnesota (US)), Ryan Cooke