Events
Events at Physics |
Events During the Week of November 8th through November 14th, 2026
Monday, November 9th, 2026
- Plasma Physics (Physics/ECE/NE 922) Seminar
- Nonlinear Waves in Magnetized Pair Plasmas: Dispersive Shocks and Sudden Dissipation
- Time: 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
- Place: 2241 Chamberlin Hall
- Speaker: Pablo Bilbao, University of Oxford
- Abstract: How intense radio emission escapes neutron-star magnetospheres is a central open question in the physics of pulsars and fast radio bursts. In this talk, I will investigate the nonlinear propagation of low-frequency extraordinary (X-mode) waves in strongly magnetized electron–positron plasmas, combining analytical drift-fluid theory with particle-in-cell simulations. We show that finite-amplitude waves steepen into sharp cusps with a characteristic (k^{-4/3}) amplitude spectrum, before plasma dispersion transforms them into trains of solitons. As the wave amplitude increases, these solitons develop progressively smaller spatial scales, eventually breaking particle adiabaticity and triggering stochastic acceleration of a small fraction of particles to relativistic energies. This leads to an abrupt onset of collisionless dissipation at wave amplitudes well below the conventional fluid wave-breaking limit, while most of the plasma remains cold. I will discuss how this mechanism constrains the propagation of intense electromagnetic transients through neutron-star magnetospheres, placing limits on the coherent radio luminosity that can escape, with implications for Crab giant pulses and fast radio bursts.
- Host: Vladimir Zhdankin
Tuesday, November 10th, 2026
- Condensed Matter Theory Group Seminar
- Probing Superconducting Electrodynamics Through Near-Field Noise
- Time: 10:00 am - 11:00 am
- Place: 3290 Chamberlin
- Speaker: Gustav Romare, UW Madison
- Abstract: Electromagnetic noise near superconductors provide a sensitive probe of their underlying electronic response. We investigate how superconducting correlations and spatially nonlocal electrodynamics influence the electromagnetic noise detected by nearby quantum sensors. By relating the wave-vector- and frequency-dependent response of superconducting systems to magnetic field fluctuations, we study experimentally accessible observables such as T1 time and their dependence on temperature, probe frequency, and sensor-sample separation. We identify characteristic noise signatures and demonstrate how near-field measurements can access information beyond that available from conventional transport probes.
- Host: Elio Koenig-Tarasevich
Wednesday, November 11th, 2026
- No events scheduled
Thursday, November 12th, 2026
- R. G. Herb Condensed Matter Seminar
- Title to be announced
- Time: 10:00 am
- Place: Chamberlin 5310
- Speaker: Chandan Setty , Iowa State University
- Host: Elio Koenig
- Astronomy Colloquium
- Copernicus Revisited: is the Earth special?
- Time: 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm
- Place: 4421 Sterling Hall
- Speaker: Laura Kreidberg, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy
- Abstract: Nearly 500 years ago, Nicolas Copernicus published his disruptive theory that Earth is not the center of the universe. This "Copernican demotion" has held fast over the centuries, as astronomers have learned that there is nothing particularly remarkable about Earth or even the Milky Way. In the last two decades, however, a new test of the Copernican Principle has emerged -- the discovery of an abundance of planets orbiting other stars. These discoveries allow us to put Earth in context and evaluate whether the formation, architecture, and present-day characteristics of our Solar System are in fact typical. Thanks to the revolutionary capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), we are finally able to study other Earth-size planets in detail, and in particular search for and characterize their atmospheres. In this talk, I will give a status report on JWST observations of rocky planets. I will cover the latest results for the iconic TRAPPIST-1 system, the study of the surface of the airless planet LHS 3844b, the search for atmospheres on lava worlds, and observations of planets in the radius valley at the boundary of rocky and gaseous worlds. Taken together, these results provide a first picture of the building blocks available for the origin of life on terrestrial planets beyond the Solar System, providing essential context for how special Earth really is.
- Host: Thomas Beatty
Friday, November 13th, 2026
- Physics Department Colloquium
- X-rays Meet Quantum Tunneling: A Journey to Single-Atom Spectroscopy
- Time: 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm
- Place: Chamberlin 2241 -
- Speaker: Volker Rose, Argonne National Laboratory
- Abstract: How do we identify a single atom using X-rays? This colloquium will explore the fundamental physics of X-rays and their interaction with matter, leading to the ability to investigate individual atoms through X-ray spectroscopy. Beginning with an introduction to X-ray generation, synchrotron radiation, and conventional X-ray microscopy, we will explore how X-rays reveal the structure, chemistry, and physical properties of materials. I will then share the scientific journey of developing Synchrotron X-ray Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (SX-STM), a technique that my team and I have pursued over much of my professional career. By combining the elemental, chemical, and magnetic sensitivity of synchrotron X-rays with the atomic-scale spatial resolution of scanning tunneling microscopy, SX-STM extends X-ray spectroscopy beyond the spatial resolution limits of conventional X-ray microscopy. Through the detection of X-ray-excited tunneling currents, we have achieved X-ray spectroscopic characterization of individual atoms, enabling the determination of their elemental identities and local chemical states. I will discuss the experimental challenges and breakthroughs that made these measurements possible, followed by recent advances in studying chemically complex materials, resolving magnetism at the atomic-layer level, and exploring the magnetic properties of individual atoms. The underlying concepts, light-matter interactions, quantum tunneling, and magnetism, connect to fundamental questions across physics. The goal of this colloquium is to make these ideas accessible to a broad audience while illustrating how scientific curiosity and experimental innovation can push the boundaries of what we can measure. This work was performed at the Advanced Photon Source and the Center for Nanoscale Materials, U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science User Facilities, under Contract No. DE-AC02-06CH11357. [1] Nature 618, 69–73 (2023). [2] Advanced Materials 36, 2402442 (2024). [3] Physical Review Materials 10, L091401 (2026).
- Host: Ke Fang