Tag Archives: gravitational waves

Two ERC funded postdoctoral positions in gravitational wave astrophysics, Milan, Italy

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Universita’ di Milano Bicocca is currently seeking to fill at least two postdoctoral research positions with highly qualified individuals interested in pursuing research in the fields gravitational wave astrophysics, with a particular focus on massive black hole binaries.

The successful candidates will join Prof. Alberto Sesana in forming the core team of ‘B Massive’, an ERC CoG funded project aimed at tackling all the facets of the astrophysics of massive black hole binaries.
We are particularly looking for candidates with strong background either in numerical (N-body and/or hydro) simulations of massive black holes binaries and their galaxy hosts or in pulsar timing observations, data analysis and inference. But candidates with relevant expertise in all aspects of massive black hole binary theory and observations, gravitational wave data analysis at large and numerical simulations are warmly welcomed to apply.

Appointments are expected to start as soon as possible but certainly no later than fall 2020. The ERC funding guarantees a generous salary, competitive with the highest European standards for this type of positions.

The Bicocca astro group has a strong expertise in massive black hole astrophysics, dynamics and gravitational waves (Prof. Monica Colpi, Prof. Massimo Dotti, Prof. Alberto Sesana and visiting Prof. Francesco Haardt), relativistic numerical simulations of compact objects (Prof. Bruno Giacomazzo), observations of high redshift galaxies and black holes (Prof. Michele Fumagalli, to join the group in 2020). It is a lively group supporting a number of postdocs and PhD students. It also have tight connections with the observatories of Brera and Merate. It is located close to the centre of Milan, the most lively and international city in Italy, 1h away from the beautiful Como Lake and the stunning Alps.

Candidates must have a PhD degree in physics, astronomy or a related discipline.
Applications should consist of:
-a cover letter,
-a brief statement of research interests,
-a curriculum vitae including publication list,
-at least three letters of recommendation.

All material should be sent electronically as soon as possible to the attention of Prof. Alberto Sesana to the email address alberto.sesana[AT]unimib.it, by October 22, 2019.

COST GWverse: Exchange of researchers working on gravitational-wave and black hole physics

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In the context of the European COST Action CA16104 on Gravitational waves, black holes and fundamental physics (GWverse), grants for short term scientific missions (STSMs) are available. We are inviting you to submit proposals for STMSs starting after Nov 1, 2019 and ending before Apr 30, 2020 (applications outside this timeframe will be discarded).

This call starts on Sep 1 and closes Oct 15, 2019. All proposals will be reviewed and the results will be announced by Oct 31, 2019.

The selection committee will take into account the geographical distribution of host and home institution, matching of funds by the host, the scientific proposal and the experience of the applicant (preference is given to Early Career Investigators).

Successful applicants will be expected to join as members of one (or more) of the Action’s Working Groups. STSM recipients should acknowledge the COST Action in any publication or talks, through the use of the COST logo and the statement “The authors would like to acknowledge networking support by the COST Action GWverse CA16104”.

STSMs are a great opportunity for all scientists within the COST Action to exchange visits, nurture collaborations, or develop new ones. Further details are available at the GWverse webpage: https://gwverse.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/stsms/

If you have any question, please contact the STSM Coordinator Andreja Gomboc: andreja.gomboc[at]ung.si

Permanent Research Scientist in Gravitational Wave Science at UCLouvain, Belgium

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The Research Institute in Mathematics and Physics (IRMP) at the Universite’ catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain) in Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium) is searching for an outstanding research scientist to start a research program in instrumentation for gravitational wave experiments. The position is permanent from day one and is open to candidates of any nationality.

The IRMP institute hosts, among others, research on fundamental interactions and cosmology equally strongly on the experimental and theoretical fronts. More than 100 physicists and mathematicians from all over the world currently work at the IRMP. Physicists of the IRMP have strong involvements in particle physics experiments, notably CMS and NA62 at the CERN international laboratory. They have recently joined the Virgo Collaboration at the European Gravitational Observatory (EGO) and are launching a new research program in gravitational wave physics which includes important contributions to the Virgo computing and detection systems. The group will also participate in the construction of a research and development facility, funded by the EU through its Interreg Europe programme, aimed to prepare the construction of the Einstein Telescope project.

In the short term, the selected candidate is mostly expected to take a leading role in current and future upgrade projects of the Virgo interferometer and to the activities related to the design and construction of the Einstein Telescope. In the longer term, (s)he will have the possibility to contribute more importantly also to the other instrumentation R&D activities at the institute, like experimental projects in particle physics.

The selected candidate will be integrated locally within a group composed of academic staff, postdoctoral researchers, PhD students and technicians. (S)he will benefit from the availability of electronics and optics laboratories as well as a drawing office, clean rooms and a large computing cluster. The selected candidate is expected to collaborate with Belgian and international partners and participate in the dissemination of scientific results.

Required qualifications:
– PhD degree in physics or engineering;
– Minimum 2 years of postdoctoral scientific experience;
– Wide experience in the development and use of electronic, optoelectronic and/or optical devices, including the associated controls, proven among others by authorship of scientific publications/presentations in the domain;
– Experience in project writing/submission and management/reporting;
– Very good knowledge of English;
– Team player with excellent communication skills;
– Readiness to travel abroad for extended periods.

Additional assets:
– Experience in laser interferometer gravitational wave experiments.
– Good knowledge of French. Otherwise, the selected candidate will be asked to acquire this skill within three years after taking office.

For more information, please contact :
Prof. Giacomo Bruno : giacomo.bruno[AT]uclouvain.be ; tel: +32 (0)10 473215
To whom at least two letters of recommendation should be sent by email.

Applications should be submitted online at the accompanying URL

Probing Effective Theories of Gravity in Strong Fields and Cosmology, Santa Barbara, USA

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Probing Effective Theories of Gravity in Strong Fields and Cosmology
KITP, UC Santa Barbara

Coordinators: Cora Dvorkin, Ira Rothstein, and Thomas Sotiriou
Scientific Advisors: Alessandra Buonanno, Pedro Ferreira, and Steve Giddings

There is strong evidence that General Relativity (GR) is only an effective field theory (EFT). While it is often assumed that the energy scale where the EFT breaks down is near the Planck scale and experimentally inaccessible, tantalizing arguments suggest that GR is not a canonical effective theory.

In particular, the apparent hints of non-locality in black hole evaporation and the small scale associated with the vacuum energy motivate reconsidering EFT ideas in gravity. Given the wealth of data in current and future high precision cosmological surveys, it is necessary to develop a tool kit of theoretically consistent EFTs for analyzing potential deviations from the predictions of GR. The birth of gravitational wave astronomy opens up other avenues for testing gravity in previously unimaginable ways, enabling the study of higher curvature backgrounds as well as black hole horizon physics.

This program is geared towards finding ways to push the boundaries of our knowledge of the EFT of GR by bringing together members of three distinct communities: strong gravity/relativistic astrophysics, cosmology, and EFT.

Primary Application Deadline: August 11th 2019. After that date application will continue to be considered in a rolling basis until the program is filled.

Please apply through the KITP website (link).

School on Physics and Astrophysics of Gravitational Waves, Bad Honnef, Germany

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A Bad Honnef physics school on physics and astrophysics of gravitational waves will be held from 08 to 13 September 2019 at the Physikzentrum Bad Honnef. The School is a theoretical school which teaches the physics and astrophysics of gravitational waves in view of full-fledged applications. Basic knowledge of general relativity and relativistic astrophysics on the level of a Bachelor curriculum is expected. Discussion and exercise sessions will allow the participants to deepen their understanding of the lectures. Advanced participants are invited to present posters or to give short talks.

LECTURES/LECTURERS:
* Theory of gravitational waves (Luc Blanchet, CNRS, Sorbonne Universite’, Paris)
* Stochastic gravitational wave backgrounds (Valerie Domcke, DESY, Hamburg)
* Gravitational wave detection (Gabriela Gonzalez, Louisiana State University)
* Gravitational waves from binary black holes (Mark Hannam, University of Cardiff)
* Gravitational wave data analysis II (Piotr Jaranowski, University of Bialystok)
* Gravitational waves from isolated neutron stars (Kostas Kokkotas, University of Tuebingen)
* Gravitational wave data analysis I (Andrzej Krolak, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw)
* Gravitational waves from stellar core collapse (Ewald Mueller, MPI for Astrophysics, Garching)
* Computational astrophysics of neutron stars (Luciano Rezzolla, Goethe University of Frankfurt)
* Focussed introduction to general relativity (Gerhard Schaefer, University of Jena)
* (Evening talk) Testing general relativity: 100 years of light deflection (Claus Laemmerzahl, ZARM, University of Bremen)

For more details and for registration please visit https://www.dpg-physik.de/veranstaltungen/2019/physics-and-astrophysics-of-gravitational-waves.

We are looking forward to meeting you in Bad Honnef, the organizers
Bernd Bruegmann, Kostas Kokkotas, Gerhard Schaefer

COST GWverse: Exchange of researchers working on gravitational-wave and black hole physics

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In the context of the European COST Action CA16104 on Gravitational waves, black holes and fundamental physics (GWverse), grants for short term scientific missions (STSMs) are available. We are inviting you to submit proposals for STMSs starting after May 1, 2019 and ending before Nov 30, 2019 (applications outside this timeframe will be discarded).

This call starts on Apr 1 and closes May 1, 2019. All proposals will be reviewed and the results will be announced by May 7, 2019.

The selection committee will take into account the geographical distribution of host and home institution, matching of funds by the host, the scientific proposal and the experience of the applicant (preference is given to Early Career Investigators).

Successful applicants will be expected to join as members of one (or more) of the Action’s Working Groups. STSM recipients should acknowledge the COST Action in any publication or talks, through the use of the COST logo and the statement “The authors would like to acknowledge networking support by the COST Action GWverse CA16104”.

STSMs are a great opportunity for all scientists within the COST Action to exchange visits, nurture collaborations, or develop new ones. Further details are available at the GWverse webpage: https://gwverse.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/stsms/
If you have any question, please contact the STSM Coordinator Andreja Gomboc: andreja.gomboc[at]ung.si

Kurt Goedel’s Legacy: Does Future lie in the Past? Vienna, Austria

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KURT GOEDEL’S LEGACY: DOES FUTURE LIE IN THE PAST?

The Kurt Goedel Society celebrates the 70th anniversary of Goedel’s
seminal publication about time travel and the 100th anniversary of the
decisive experimental verification of general relativity by organizing
a conference at the University of Vienna, Austria from July 25 until
July 27, 2019. This event will bring together the most prominent
researchers from the fields of Physics, Mathematics, Philosophy and
Artificial Intelligence.

The conference will be complemented by a special exhibition about life
and work of Kurt Goedel with emphasis on the Goedel’s solution.

The program will consist of the invited talks, contributed talks and
posters. Confirmed invited speakers include:  MARKUS ASPELMEYER, JOHN
D.BARROW, CHARLES L. BENNETT, DAVID BENNETT, GEORGE F.R. ELLIS,
JULIET FLOYD, GEORG GOTTLOB, JAN VON PLATO, WOLFGANG SCHLEICH, MARIKA TAYLOR, TOBY WALSH,  RAINER WEISS AND PALLE YOURGRAU.
DANA SCOTT is the Honorary Chair of the Conference.

Important Dates (submission  and registration through the web site of the conference):

May 15 , 2019: Submission deadline for contributed talks and posters

May  25, 2019: Notification

June 1, 2019: Early registration deadline

July 25-27, 2019: Conference

Computational Challenges in Gravitational Wave Astronomy, Los Angeles, USA

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The Nobel-Prize-winning observations of gravitational waves by the Advanced LIGO and Virgo detectors have opened an entirely new window to study the universe. The detection of the first gravitational-wave signal, GW150914, on September 14th, 2015, can be considered one of the greatest scientific milestones of all time, confirming a century-old prediction of Albert Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity. At present, gravitational waves have been detected from mergers of binary black holes and binary neutron stars. Different types of gravitational-wave signals from other sources await to be detected, as e.g. core-collapse supernovae, spinning neutron stars, white-dwarf binary mergers, and even stochastic backgrounds of astrophysical or cosmological origin.

The detection of gravitational waves is, foremost, a technological challenge. In addition, there are significant mathematical and computational difficulties hampering the process of detection. One of them involves the solution of Einstein’s gravitational field equations, either through approximate methods or by fully numerical means, to generate waveform signals to aid the identification of the event types and the inference of their physical properties. Another major computational difficulty is the analysis of large volumes of non-Gaussian, non-stationary noisy data, aggravated by the presence of transient spurious signals (glitches) that may not only disturb astrophysical signals but also mimic true signals, increasing the false-alarm rate and producing a decrease in the detectors’ duty cycle.

This workshop will bring together experts in the field of mathematical and numerical relativity, and researchers in gravitational-wave data analysis, who will discuss recent advances for the detection and reconstruction of gravitational-wave signals from advanced interferometers. It will cover aspects ranging from the formulation of Einstein’s theory of General Relativity, including state-of-the-art numerical methodology for the generation of waveform templates from astrophysical systems, to gravitational-wave detector characterization, data analysis, and parameter estimation, with modern mathematical and numerical approaches.

Organizing Committee

Marco Cavaglia (University of Mississippi)
Matt Choptuik (University of British Columbia)
Elena Cuoco (Scuola Normale Superiore)
Jose Antonio Font (University of Valencia)
Antonio Marquina (University of Valencia)
Stanley Osher (University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA))

Physical Interpretations of Relativity Theory (PIRT-2019), Moscow, Russia

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International Conference “Physical Interpretations of Relativity Theory” (PIRT-2019), Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Moscow, Russia, 1 – 5 July , 2019, organized by Bauman University (Russia) and University of Liverpool (Great Britain).

The objectives of this conference are the same as those pursued in the Physical Interpretations of Relativity Theory (PIRT) conferences which have been held in Imperial College, London, every two years since 1988. These objectives are the physical, geometrical, and mathematical interpretations of the formal structure of Relativity Theory, and to examine the questions concerning the various interpretations of the accepted mathematical expression of the Relativity Principle.

The Conference Program of the Moscow PIRT-2019 will include papers dealing with the following major themes:
– Gravitation, cosmology and large-scale structure;
– Gravitational waves and experimental tests of the relativity theory;
– Space-time, topology and differential geometry;
– Relativistic electrodynamics;
– High energy astrophysics;
– Nature and models of physical vacuum.

SCIENTIFIC ORGANIZING COMMITTEE PIRT-2019
Anatoly Aleksandrov, Bauman University, Russia
Barry Barish, California Institute of Technology, the United States
Aroonkumar Beesham, University of Zululand, South Africa
David Blair, University of South Western Australia, Australia
Anatol Cherepashchuk, Sternberg Astronomical Institute Moscow University, Russia
Alexander Chernikov, Bauman University, Russia
Sergei Chervon, Ulyanovsk State Pedagogical University, Russia
Naresh Dadhich, IUCAA, PUNE, India
John Dainton, Liverpool University, Great Britain
Vladimir Gladyshev, Bauman University, Russia
Georgii Izmailov, Moscow Aviation Institute, Russia
Nikolay Kardashev, Astro Space Center of P.N. Lebedev Physical Institute of RAS, Russia
Louis Kauffman, University of Illinois at Chicago, the United States
Richard Kerner, University Pierre et Marie Curie, France
Vassily Manturov, Bauman University, Moscow State University, Russia
Bivudutta Mishra, BITS-Pilani, India
Andrey Morozov, Bauman University, Russia
Nicola Napolitano, INAF Astronomical Observatory of Capodimonte, Italy
Guido Pizzella, University of Rome, Italy
Konstantin Postnov, Sternberg State Astronomical Institute, Moscow State University, Russia
Vladislav Pustovoit, Russian Academy of Science, Bauman University, Russia
Carlos Romero, Universidade Federal da Paraiba, Departamento de Fisica, Brazil
Peter Rowlands, University of Liverpool, the United Kingdom
Valentin Rudenko, Sternberg State Astronomical Institute, Moscow State University, Russia
Mikhail Sazhin, Sternberg State Astronomical Institute, Moscow State University, Russia
Alexei Starobinsky, Landau Institute for Theoretical Physics, Russia
Sergey Sushkov, Kazan Federal University, Russia
Roland Triay, Centre de Physique Théorique CNRS – Aix- Marseille University, France
Nina Tyannikova, Bauman University, Russia
Rainer Weiss, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the United States

Postal Communications may be sent to the Secretary of PIRT-2019 Organizing Committee preferably by e-mail to Dr. Nina D. Tyannikova (dekan-fn[AT]mail.ru)
Details will be at the website: http://www.pirt.info/index.php?lang=eng

IV Jose Plinio Baptista School on Gravitational Waves, Espirito Santo, Brazil

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We will hold the IV Jose Plinio Baptista School on Gravitational Waves in Pedra Azul, Espirito Santo, Brazil, during October 15-19, 2018. This school is aimed at postgraduate students, the registration fee is Brazilian R$200 and the registration deadline is October 5, 2018.

The invited speakers for mini-courses are:

• “Gravitational Wave Detection History” – Odylio D. Aguiar (INPE, Brazil)
• “Fundamentals of Gravitational Wave Astronomy” – Scott Hughes (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA)
• “Observing and Interpreting Gravitational Waves From Black Holes and Neutron Stars” – Badri Krishnan (Max Planck Institute, Germany)
• “Topics in Post-Newtonian Theory” – Alexandre Le Tiec (Observatoire de Paris-Meudon, France)
• “Gravitational Waves and Fundamental Gravity” – Ricardo Sturani (UFRN, Brazil)
• “Topics in Gravitational Wave Physics” – Bernard Whiting (University of Florida, USA)

The School will also consist of the following advanced seminars:

• “Gravitational Waves: The Nobel Prize 2017” – Odylio Aguiar (INPE, Brazil)
• “Self-Force and Extreme Mass-Ratio Inspirals” – Marc Casals (CBPF, Brazil)
• “On the Bending of Light: from Newton Optics to the Propagation of Electromagnetic Waves in the Vicinity of a Black Hole” – Luís Crispino (UFPA, Brazil)
• “Stability of Black Holes” – Gustavo Dotti (Universidad de Cordoba, Argentina)
• “The Gravitational Waves Background”  – Jose Antonio de Freitas Pacheco (Observatoire de la Cote d’Azur, France)
• “Inflationary Models and Primordial Gravitational Waves” – Alexey A. Starobinsky (Landau institute, Russia)
• “Black Hole Physics”  – Jorge Zanelli (Centro de Estudios Científicos, Chile)

Some time is also allocated to short communications and poster presentations by participants.

Organizing Committee:

• Davi C. Rodrigues (UFES, Brazil)
• Felipe M. Santos (UFES, Brazil)
• Hermano E. S. Velten (UFES, Brazil)
• Julio C. Fabris (Chair, UFES, Brazil)
• Marc Casals (CBPF, Brazil)
• Oliver F. Piattella (UFES, Brazil)
• Riccardo Sturani (UFRN, Brazil)
• Syrios Gomes (UFES, Brazil)
• Valerio Marra (UFES, Brazil)
• Winfried Zimdahl (UFES, Brazil)

COST GWverse: Exchange of researchers working on gravitational-wave and black hole physics

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In the context of the European COST Action CA16104 on Gravitational waves, black holes and fundamental physics (GWverse), grants for short term scientific missions (STSMs) are available. We are inviting you to submit proposals for STMSs starting after Nov 1, 2018 and ending before April 30, 2019 (applications outside this timeframe will be discarded).

This call starts on Sep 1 and closes Oct 15, 2018. All proposals will be reviewed and the results will be announced by Nov 1, 2018. The selection committee will take into account the geographical distribution of host and home institution, matching of funds by the host, the scientific proposal and the experience of the applicant (preference is given to Early Career Investigators).

Successful applicants will be expected to join as members of one (or more) of the Action’s Working Groups. STSM recipients should acknowledge the COST Action in any publication or talks, through the use of the COST logo and the statement “The authors would like to acknowledge networking support by the COST Action GWverse CA16104”.

STSMs are a great opportunity for all scientists within the COST Action to exchange visits, nurture collaborations, or develop new ones. Further details are available at the GWverse webpage: https://gwverse.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/stsms/
If you have any question, please contact the STSM Coordinator Andreja Gomboc: andreja.gomboc[at]ung.si

3rd HEL.A.S. Summer School and DAAD School “Neutron Stars and Gravitational Waves”, Thessaloniki, Greece (2nd announcement)

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3rd HEL.A.S. SUMMER SCHOOL AND DAAD SCHOOL

NEUTRON STARS AND GRAVITATIONAL WAVES

OCTOBER 8-12, 2018
THESSALONIKI, GREECE

Important dates: Early registration: 20/8/2018 ; Late registration: 10/9/2018

SECOND ANNOUNCEMENT

With the detection of the binary black hole merger GW150914, we have entered the era of Gravitational Wave Astronomy, while the detection of the binary neutron star merger GW170817 was the first example of Gravitational Wave Multi-messenger observations. In the coming years, additional science runs with the LIGO and VIRGO detectors are expected to lead to exciting new discoveries, with KAGRA and LIGO-India subsequently joining the existing detectors and forming a global network. In parallel, new upgrades and new detectors are planned, whereas space-born gravitational wave detectors, such as LISA, are under intense development.

The main goal of this school is to provide an introduction to the foundations of Gravitational Waves, including theory, numerical simulations, principles of detection and astrophysical implications. Neutron Stars will be discussed in detail as one of the prime sources of gravitational waves, emphasizing the key role that gravitational wave astronomy can play in constraining the theory of gravity observationally.

The Aristotle University of Thessaloniki will welcome around 30 MSc and PhD students to attend the summer school, which will introduce them to key concepts in this exciting field as well as provide them with an opportunity to interact with experts. Advanced undergraduate students that are engaged in research projects related to the theme of the summer school may also apply.

The program of the summer school will consist of several 90’ minutes lectures on each morning, with additional exercise-style lectures and talks by members of the DAAD collaboration on each afternoon. Indicative titles for the lectures are:

1) Theory of gravitational waves
2) Compact object oscillations and GW asteroseismology
3) Constraints on the neutron star equation of state
4) Magnetars and core-collapse supernovae
4) Compact objects in alternative theories of gravity
5) GW detectors: LIGO/VIRGO and planned 3rd generation detectors
6) LISA mission and science

Lecturers:

Pau Amaro-Seoane (Barcelona)
Theocharis Apostolatos (Athens)
Andreas Bauswein (HITS-Heidelberg / Darmstadt)
Katerina Chatziioannou (CITA Toronto)
Michael Gabler (MPA-Garching)
Stavros Katsanevas (EGO Director)
Kostas Kokkotas (Tuebingen)
Georgios Lalazisis (Thessaloniki)
Nikolaos Stergioulas (Thessaloniki)

The school will take place at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Partial grants for local expenses to a limited number of participants are provided by the Hellenic Astronomical Society (HEL.A.S.). The school is supported by the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, by the Department of Physics and by the Section of Astrophysics, Astronomy and Mechanics. The school is also supported by a DAAD grant for the academic collaboration between the relativity groups of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and the University of Tuebingen.

A number of rooms at selected hotels have been reserved at special prices. Please note that the block reservation will be valid only until August 30, 2018, so it is advisable to make your reservation as soon as possible. After that, rooms and prices will depend on the availability of each hotel.

We are looking forward to meeting all interested participants in Thessaloniki in October!

With our best regards,

The Organizing Committee

K. Kokkotas
N. Stergioulas
P. Iosif
G. Tantilian
N. Tryfonidis
S. Vretinaris

3rd HEL.A.S. Summer School and DAAD School “Neutron Stars and Gravitational Waves”, Thessaloniki, Greece

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3rd HEL.A.S. SUMMER SCHOOL AND DAAD SCHOOL
NEUTRON STARS AND GRAVITATIONAL WAVES

OCTOBER 8-12, 2018, THESSALONIKI, GREECE

Important deadlines: Early registration: 31/7/2018; Late registration: 31/8/2018.

FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT

With the detection of the binary black hole merger GW150914, we have entered the era of Gravitational Wave Astronomy, while the detection of the binary neutron star merger GW170817 was the first example of Gravitational Wave Multi-messenger observations. In the coming years, additional science runs with the LIGO and VIRGO detectors are expected to lead to exciting new discoveries, with KAGRA and LIGO-India subsequently joining the existing detectors and forming a global network. In parallel, new upgrades and new detectors are planned, whereas space-born gravitational wave detectors, such as LISA, are under intense development.

The main goal of this school is to provide an introduction to the foundations of Gravitational Waves, including theory, numerical simulations, principles of detection and astrophysical implications. Neutron Stars will be discussed in detail as one of the prime sources of gravitational waves, emphasizing the key role that gravitational wave astronomy can play in constraining the theory of gravity observationally.

The Aristotle University of Thessaloniki will welcome around 30 MSc and PhD students to attend the summer school, which will introduce them to key concepts in this exciting field as well as provide them with an opportunity to interact with experts. Advanced undergraduate students that are engaged in research projects related to the theme of the summer school may also apply.

The program of the summer school will consist of several 90’ minutes lectures on each morning, with additional exercise-style lectures and talks by members of the DAAD collaboration on each afternoon. Indicative titles for the lectures are:

1) Theory of gravitational waves
2) Compact object oscillations and GW asteroseismology
3) Constraints on the neutron star equation of state
4) Magnetars and core-collapse supernovae
4) Compact objects in alternative theories of gravity
5) GW detectors: LIGO/VIRGO and planned 3rd generation detectors

Lecturers:

Theocharis Apostolatos (Athens)
Andreas Bauswein (HITS-Heidelberg / Darmstadt) (TBC)
Katerina Chatziioannou (CITA Toronto)
Michael Gabler (MPA-Garching)
Stavros Katsanevas (EGO Director)
Kostas Kokkotas (Tuebingen)
Nikolaos Stergioulas (Thessaloniki)

The school will take place at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Partial grants for local expenses to a limited number of participants are provided by the Hellenic Astronomical Society (HEL.A.S.). The school is supported by the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, by the Department of Physics and by the Section of Astrophysics, Astronomy and Mechanics. The school is also supported by a DAAD grant for the academic collaboration between the relativity groups of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and the University of Tuebingen.

A number of rooms at selected hotels have been reserved at special prices. Please note that the block reservation will be valid until the registration deadline only, so it is advisable to make your reservation as soon as possible. After that, rooms and prices will depend on the availability of each hotel.

We are looking forward to meeting all interested participants in Thessaloniki in October!

With our best regards,

The Organizing Committee

K. Kokkotas
N. Stergioulas
P. Iosif
G. Tantilian
N. Tryfonidis
S. Vretinaris

Fundamental physics with LISA, Florence, Italy

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Observations of astrophysical systems where gravity is extreme — highly-dynamical and/or non-linearly strong — have the potential to shed light on some of the most profound questions in physics today: from the nature of compact objects to whether Einstein’s theory accurately describes the merger of black holes. The first space-borne detector, LISA, a joint ESA-NASA mission is currently planned to be deployed in 2034, allowing for the first observation of the merger of supermassive black holes and of extreme mass-ratio inspirals. These observations will enable new accurate tests of general relativity, in particular in the strong regime.

We announce the Fundamental Physics with LISA workshop which will take place on November 12-14, 2018 at the Galileo Galilei Institute (Arcetri, Florence, IT). Its goal will be to discuss ways in which we can test General Relativity and learn about fundamental theoretical physics with future LISA observations.

For more information and registration, please visit the conference webpage: http://www.ggi.infn.it/showevent.pl?id=305

In order to encourage interaction and discussion, the workshop will bring together experts in theory, phenomenology, modeling and data analysis, and will have an unusual format. Each day will be centered around one of these facets, and consist of three topical sessions in which discussions will be moderated by a panel of three or four experts. The goal of the workshop is to foster fruitful interactions between different dimensions of LISA science. This will include the following topics:

* Model independent tests versus Model-Specific tests of GR.
* Tests of GR and inferences about physics from the inspiral of supermassive black holes.
* Tests of GR and inferences about physics from the ringdown of supermassive black hole merger.
* Tests of GR and inferences about physics from extreme mass-ratio inspirals.
* Inferences about the nature of supermassive black holes.
* Tests of superradiance and inferences about ultralight boson fields and fuzzy dark matter.
* Exotic compact objects, tests of the horizon, and GW echoes.
* Environmental effects

The number of participants is limited. The registration deadline is *Sepember 1st* or earlier if the capacity of the conference venue is reached. The conference fee (€60) includes lunch tickets for on-site catering.

## PROGRAM ##

DAY 1: THEORETICAL PHYSICS FOUNDATIONS
1A: Black holes
1B: Cosmology
1C: Gravity

DAY 2: INFERENCES
2A: Inferences on exotic objects
2B: Inferences on particle physics
2C: Inferences on theoretical physics

DAY 3: SYSTEMATICS AND DATA ANALYSIS
3A: Massive black-hole binaries: modeling and systematics
3B: Extreme mass-ratio inspirals: modeling and environmental systematics
3C: Data-analysis tools and strategies

## INVITED PANEL SPEAKERS ##
A. Arvanitaki
S. Babak
E. Berti
D. Blas
R. Brito
A. Buonanno *
C. Burrage
C. Caprini
V. Cardoso
K. Chatziioannou
N. Cornish
J. de Boer
P. Ferreira
J. Gair *
S. Giddings
T. Hinderer
S. Hughes
L. Hui
A. Klein
B. Kocsis
C. Palenzuela
A. Raccannelli
T. Sotiriou
L. Stein *
A. Tolley
M. Trodden
M. Van den Meent
M. Vallisneri
A. Vecchio
F. Vernizzi
F. Vidotto
H. Witek
K. Yagi
A. Zimmerman

(* to be confirmed)

######################

Organizers:
Enrico Barausse (Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris),
Thomas Hertog (KU Leuven),
Philippe Jetzer (University of Zurich),
Paolo Pani (Sapienza University of Rome),
Nicolas Yunes (Montana State University)

Support:
– European Research Council Starting Grant DarkGRA-757480 (“Unveiling the dark universe with gravitational waves”).
– COST Action CA16104 “Gravitational waves, black holes and fundamental physics” (GWverse)

Workshop poster (courtesy of Michele Monasta, http://www.michelemonasta.it):

high-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/de8lxpokwjom6lp/nov_2018.pdf?dl=0
low-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ekdpzg6u87gys7c/poster_low_res.pdf?dl=0

COST GWverse: Exchange of researchers working on gravitational-wave and black hole physics

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In the context of the European COST Action CA16104 on Gravitational waves, black holes and fundamental physics (GWverse), grants for short term scientific missions (STSMs) are available. We are inviting you to submit proposals for STMSs starting after May 1, 2018 and ending before Nov 30, 2018 (applications outside this timeframe will be discarded).

This call starts on Feb 15 and closes Mar 30, 2018. All proposals will be reviewed and the results will be announced by Apr 15, 2018.

The selection committee will take into account the geographical distribution of host and home institution, matching of funds by the host, the scientific proposal and the experience of the applicant (preference is given to Early Career Investigators).

Successful applicants will be expected to join as members of one (or more) of the Action’s Working Groups. STSM recipients should acknowledge the COST Action in any publication or talks, through the use of the COST logo and the statement “The authors would like to acknowledge networking support by the COST Action GWverse CA16104”.

STSMs are a great opportunity for all scientists within the COST Action to exchange visits, nurture collaborations, or develop new ones. Further details are available at the GWverse webpage: https://gwverse.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/stsms/
If you have any question, please contact the STSM Coordinator Andreja Gomboc: andreja.gomboc[at]ung.si

GEMMA (Gravitational-waves, ElectroMagnetic and dark MAtter) Physics Workshop, Lecce, Italy

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Dear colleagues,

it is a pleasure to announce the GEMMA (Gravitational-waves, ElectroMagnetic and dark MAtter) Physics Workshop to be held in Lecce (Italy) from June 4th to June 7th, 2018.

The aim of the GEMMA workshop is to discuss about gravitational waves, multimessenger astrophysics and dark matter physics at this especially exciting times, bringing together the experimental, theoretical and data analysis aspects of these apparently heterogeneous fields.

Registration is now open and Abstract Submission is welcome on these topics. Please find further information at http://www.roma1.infn.it/conference/GEMMA/index.html.

The workshop is organised in days focused around key topics introduced by invited speakers and followed by contributed talks. There will also be a poster session, together with four Young Scientist GEMMA Awards to the best poster contributions by skilled young researchers.

The scientific program will be finalised in the upcoming days.

The deadline for abstract submission is March 15th, 2018 and the deadline for early registration is February 28th, 2018.

The LOC and the SOC are looking forward to welcoming you in Lecce.

Best Regards,

Paola Leaci on behalf of the SOC and LOC

COST GWverse: Exchange of researchers working on gravitational-wave and black hole physics

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In the context of the European COST Action CA16104 on Gravitational waves, black holes and fundamental physics (GWverse), grants for short term scientific missions (STSMs) are available. We are inviting you to submit proposals for STMSs starting after Nov 1, 2017 and before April 30, 2018 (applications outside this timeframe will be discarded).

This call starts on Sep 1 and closes Oct 15, 2017. All proposals will be reviewed and the results will be announced by Nov 1, 2017.

STSMs are a great opportunity for all scientists within the COST Action to exchange visits, nurture collaborations, or develop new ones. Further details are available at the GWverse webpage: https://gwverse.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/stsms/
If you have any question, please contact the STSM Coordinator Andreja Gomboc: andreja.gomboc[at]ung.si

Observing Black Holes: From the Universe to the Lab, London UK

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IOP Gravitational Physics Group September Meeting
“Observing Black Holes: From the Universe to the Lab”

Friday, 15 September 2017, 12:00 – 17:00
Ayrton and Franklin Rooms, Institute of Physics, 76 Portland Place, London W1B 1NT, UK

This half-day meeting of the IOP Gravitational Physics Group is focused on recent observational developments of black holes. The meeting will be comprised of three speakers discussing the following topics:

Gravitational Wave Observations – John Veitch (University of Glasgow)
Imaging a Supermassive Black Hole – Jason Dexter (Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics)
Observation of Superradiance in a Vortex Flow – Silke Weinfurtner (University of Nottingham)

All are welcome to attend and no registration fee will be charged. The talks will be preceded by the IOP Gravitational Physics Group annual general meeting.

Schedule
12:00: Annual General Meeting for members of the IOP Gravitational Physics Group
13:30-14:30 – John Veitch
14:30-15:30 – Jason Dexter
16:00-17:00 – Silke Weinfurtner

Registration
https://www.iopconferences.org/iop/1129/home

Signed
The IOP Gravitational Physics Group Committee
gp.iop.org

Observing Black Holes: From the Universe to the lab, London, UK

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“Observing Black Holes: From the Universe to the lab”

This half-day meeting of the IOP Gravitational Physics Group is focused on recent observational developments of black holes. The meeting will be comprised of three speakers who will discuss the following topics:

Gravitational Wave Observations – John Veitch (University of Glasgow)
Imaging a Supermassive Black Hole – Jason Dexter (Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics)
Observation of Superradiance in a Vortex Flow – Silke Weinfurtner (University of Nottingham)

All are welcome to attend and no registration fee will be charged. The talks will be preceded by the IOP Gravitational Physics Group annual general meeting

Signed

The IOP Gravitational Physics Group Committee

New code: EFTofPNG (version 1.0)

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EFTofPNG is a public Mathematica code for high precision Feynman computation in the Effective Field Theory of Post-Newtonian Gravity. The code covers the current state of the art PN accuracy including spinning components in the merging compact binaries. Its final unit computes observables useful for the waveform modelling, and serves as a pipeline chain for the wave templates.

This package was created in view of the timely need to publicly share automated computation tools, which integrate the various types of physics manifested in the expected increasing influx of gravitational waves data.

The code is available as a public repository in GitHub.

We aimed for a code accessible to the classical Gravity community, yet of possible use to the broader community.

New code: EFTofPNG (version 1.0)

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EFTofPNG is a public Mathematica code for high precision Feynman computation in the Effective Field Theory of Post-Newtonian Gravity. The code covers the current state of the art PN accuracy including spinning components in the merging compact binaries. Its final unit computes observables useful for the waveform modelling, and serves as a pipeline chain for the wave templates.

This package was created in view of the timely need to publicly share automated computation tools, which integrate the various types of physics manifested in the expected increasing influx of gravitational waves data.

The code is available as a public repository in GitHub.

We aimed for a code accessible to the classical Gravity community, yet of possible use to the broader community.

Exchange of researchers working on gravitational-wave and black hole physics

Posted on by

In the context of the European COST Action CA16104 on Gravitational waves, black holes and fundamental physics, grants for short term scientific missions (STSMs) are available. We are inviting you to submit proposals for STMSs starting after July 1 and before November 30, 2017. Applications outside this timeframe will be discarded (a second call will open in September).

This call starts on May 15 and closes June 15, 2017. All proposals will be reviewed and the results will be announced by July 1, 2017.

Short Term Scientific Missions (STSMs) are a great opportunity for all scientists within the COST Action to exchange visits, nurture collaborations, or develop new ones. The COST association defines the STSM as exchange visits between researchers involved in a COST Action, allowing scientists to visit an institution or laboratory in another COST country.

Participants from a participating COST Country or Cooperative State can be hosted at institution in:
– another participating COST Country or Cooperative State,
– another participating COST Country or Cooperative State,
– an approved NNC (Near Neighbour Country) institution,
– an approved IPC (International Partner Country), or
– an approved Specific organization.

Participants from an approved NNC (Near Neighbour Country) institution or an approved European RTD Organization can only be hosted at another participating COST Country or cooperative state.

A European RTD Organisation is any intergovernmental scientific research organisation that is responsible for infrastructures and laboratories whose members are countries, and the majority of which are COST Member Countries or Cooperating State.

STSMs are aimed at fostering collaboration, sharing new techniques and infrastructure that may not be available in other participants’ institutions or laboratories. STSMs are of two types (more on STSM types can be found at: https://gwverse.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/stsms/stsm-types/) and are intended especially for young researchers.

The details of the application procedure can be found at:
https://gwverse.tecnico.ulisboa.pt/stsms/how-to-apply/

For queries, contact the STSM coordinator Andreja Gomboc, andreja.gomboc[at]ung.si

New Frontiers in Gravitational-Wave Astrophysics, Rome, Italy

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The exciting discovery of GW150914 has opened a new era for physics and astrophysics, which is rich of opportunities and challenges. New questions appear, and old questions are posed with renovated strength. This workshop brings together leading experts in gravitational-wave astrophysics, with the aim of discussing new frontiers in this exponentially-growing field, such as formation of black-hole binaries, multiwavelength and multimessenger astronomy, tests of gravity, neutron-star modelling, and equation-of-state extraction from gravitational-wave signals.

There will be few talks per day, three round tables, and plenty of time for discussions. The main themes to be discussed (one per day) are:

– GWs after the first detections
– GWs and neutron-star modelling
– Fundamental physics with GWs
– From ground to space

List of confirmed invited speakers and round-table organizers:

Stanislav Babak (AEI, Germany)
Enrico Barausse (IAP, France)
Andreas Bauswein (HITS, Germany)
Sebastiano Bernuzzi (Parma U., Italy)
Chris Berry (Birmingham U., UK)
Emanuele Berti (Mississippi U., USA)
Vitor Cardoso (IST, Portugal)
Massimo Dotti (Milan U., Italy)
Tania Hinderer (AEI, Germany)
Antoine Klein (IAP, France)
Kostas Kokkotas (Tubingen U., Germany)
Michela Mapelli (Padova U., Italy)
Rosalba Perna (Stony Brook, USA)
Raffaella Schneider (Sapienza U., Italy)
Alberto Sesana (Birmingham U., UK)
Thomas Sotiriou (Nottingham U., UK)
Leo Stein (Caltech, USA)
Alberto Vecchio (Birmingham, UK)
Kent Yagi (Princeton, USA)
Nico Yunes (Montana U., USA)

Since the number of participants is limited, we suggest to register at your earliest convenience.

Looking forward to seeing you in Rome,

Valeria Ferrari, Leonardo Gualtieri, Paolo Pani

Gravitational waves, Poland, Warsaw

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The conference on gravitational waves – mathematical, computational, astrophysical and quantum approaches. The conference will take place from the 9th (arrival day) to the 11th of December 2016 at the Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw.

Invited Speakers: Iwo Bialynicki-Birula, Piotr Chrusciel, Joerg Frauendiener, Helmut Friedrich, Petr Horava, Piotr Jaranowski, Jerzy Kijowski, Andrzej Krolak, Igor Novikov, Pawel Nurowski, Roger Penrose, Uwe Semmelmann, Paul Tod, Andrzej Trautman.

The Next Detectors for Gravitational Wave Astronomy, 5-week workshop, KITPC, Beijing

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The first detection of gravitational waves by ground-based detectors in the 10Hz – 10 kHz frequency band is expected after advanced gravitational wave detectors now being installed and commissioned reach their full sensitivity, between 2016-2020. Signals from the known population of binary neutron stars are expected, as well as signals from other sources such as binary black holes. In addition to ground-based detectors, space based detectors for the millihertz band are under active development, pulsar timing observatories are searching for gravitational waves in the nanohertz band, and studies of the cosmic microwave background are searching for evidence for gravitational waves at ~10-16 Hz. The need for an expanded array of ground-based detectors is well understood. Expansion of the array and particularly the addition of a southern hemisphere detector will greatly improve angular resolution, array duty cycle, source galaxy identification, and source parameter estimation. The expanded array should be designed to maximise the science outcomes of gravitational wave astronomy in regard to both the fundamental testing of general relativity and astrophysical observations.

New approaches and new technologies for ground based gravitational wave detectors have been under development for a number of years. Proposed designs for future detectors were considered by the Einstein Telescope collaboration and by LIGO Scientific Collaboration “colour groups” in 2010-2012.

This KITPC Program will bring leading experts in gravitational wave astrophysics, gravitational wave detector science and engineering, quantum opto-mechanics, precision optics, fine mechanics and materials science together in a 5 week program focused on designing the next ground based detectors, and special sessions and workshops on the optimum design for space based detectors.

Future detector designs depend crucially on key enabling technologies in which there has been intense theoretical and experimental research over recent years. These include

– theory of acoustic noise and development of optical materials that combine ultralow acoustic noise and optical losses,
– theory and technology for Newtonian gravitational noise reduction,
– theory and implementation of macroscopic quantum measurement techniques.

Considerations for evaluating different detector arrays include: a) knowledge and modelling of signal sources; b) modelling of detector array performance in relation to source parameter extraction and signal to noise ratio; c) methods of data analysis; d) capabilities and performance of multi-messenger astronomy techniques.

Finally, design choices for the next ground based detectors will depend on practical considerations that include the time scale for achieving performance requirements, understanding of the risks associated with design choices, and cost trade-offs versus funding opportunities.

Week 1 will focus on the entire gravitational wave spectrum including regions targeted by pulsar timing, space laser interferometers, atom interferometers and ground based detectors. It will review the current knowledge of sources, detectors and data analysis, and identify critical areas of research in the physics of sources, gravitational wave detector science and multimessenger astronomy.

Week 2 will include the Third Beijing Workshop on Gravitational Waves (held at Tsinghua University, Beijing). The program of this workshop is centered on the following themes:

– Detection of gravitational waves: instruments, signal analysis, data analysis,…
– Gravitational wave sources: neutron star binaries, black hole binaries,…
– Multi-messenger astrophysics: optical, X-ray, or gamma ray counterparts, neutrinos,…
– Other gravitational-wave related themes (supporting computing architecture,…)

Weeks 3-4 will explore the possibilities for realistic designs for the next ground based detectors, plus workshop to explore space detector designs and their synergy with ground based detectors. Sessions will include:

– Quantum measurement technologies based on optical squeezing and optical spring effects;
– Core technologies including laser wavelength, test mass material, optical coatings, detector configurations, vacuum and cryogenics, and control systems.
– Broadening the sensitivity bandwidth (<10Hz, >3kHz) and multimessenger astronomy.
– Interferometer arm length: vacuum and cost/sensitivity trade-offs. Space detector workshop topics will include:
– Technology: high-power space qualified lasers, ultra-stable oscillators, pointing, sensors, UV discharging, time delay interferometry.
– Mission design: layout, armlength, orbit.
– Sources, data analysis and multimessenger astronomy: galaxy and black hole evolution, optical counterparts, EMRI templates, TeV signatures and dark energy.

Week 5 will focus on the programme outcomes: completion of the science case and conceptual design for the next ground based detectors. Publication: The outcomes will be published as a special issue of a refereed journal containing a single multi-authored design paper on the next ground based detector, a multi-authored review on space detectors and short individual contributions. Week 5 will also organize an international conference on gravitation and cosmology jointed with the 4th Galileo-Xu Guangxi meeting, to celebrate GR 100

About 50 international participants and 100 participants from China are expected to attend the KITP Program, which will take place on the Campus of the CAS-KITP in Beijing. The program will include formal presentations, workshops and informal working groups along the lines of Aspen workshops. The draft program below will be modified according to advice from the IAC and Coordinating Committee and availability of participants. Funding details for participants will be given in the second announcement.

International Organizing Committee
David Blair, Junwei Cao, Zhoujian Cao, Yanbei Chen, Yun-song Piao, Wen Zhao, Zong-Hong Zhu

Towards gravitational wave astronomy: data analysis techniques and challenges, London

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The next few years promise to be exciting ones for the field of gravitational wave astronomy: ground-based gravitational wave detectors will begin taking data at unprecedented sensitivities; pulsar timing arrays are continuing to improve their timing accuracy; and several experiments are studying the cosmic microwave background polarisation in great detail. Together, these methods are probing a huge range of the gravitational wave spectrum, and detections will offer a wealth of new information on compact binaries, supermassive black holes, and general relativity in extreme environments from the early universe to black hole mergers.
Exploiting the datasets provided by these cutting edge observations has spurred the development of novel data analysis methods to understand gravitational wave sources.

This Royal Astronomical Society discussion meeting will bring together researchers from these diverse areas to encourage the sharing of techniques and foster further collaboration within the data analysis community.