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2025
2026
  • 26 September 2025
  • 2:00 EDT

The search for freshly synthesized radionuclides from stellar explosions on Earth

Stars are the element factories of the universe. Stellar explosions distribute freshly synthesized radionuclides in the interstellar medium and lead to the chemical enrichment of galaxies. These cataclysmic events moreover shape the interstellar medium and form large scale structures in the universe.  Live radionuclides ejected by these explosions are the fingerprints of stellar nucleosynthesis. The direct detection of them on Earth and the Moon helps to constrain nucleosynthesis models as well as interstellar medium dynamics near the solar system.  In this presentation, I will give an overview of successful interstellar radionuclide detections on Earth and the Moon using the single atom-counting technique Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS). The investigated radionuclides, 60Fe from core-collapse supernovae as well as 244Pu and 247Cm from the r-process shed light on million year old supernova activity near Earth, recent deposition of stardust on Earth from the Complex of Local Interstellar Clouds (CLIC) and constrain the timing and source of the last r-process event in the Milky Way. Future measurement campaigns for additional radionuclides such as 26Al, 53Mn or 182Hf are foreseen. 

Professional Webpage: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dominik-koll-ams/(link is external) 
Group Webpage: https://www.hzdr.de/ams(link is external)


 

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  • 28 September 2025
  • 1:00 EDT

Public Talks by Laura Greene on Exotic Superconductivity: The Dark Energy of Quantum Materials

 Laura H. Greene, chief scientist of the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory (MagLab) and the Marie Krafft Professor of Physics at Florida State University, will present a talk titled Exotic Superconductivity: The Dark Energy of Quantum Materials. This talk will explore her research on unconventional superconductors, mysterious quantum materials that could transform energy systems and space exploration. View event
  • 29 September 2025 – 3 October 2025

First Workshop on New Generations of Detector and Data Acquisition Systems for Nuclear Physics (NEXTGENDD)

 We hope that NEXTGENDD can be an effective stage for experts to to discuss the status and the future directions of R&D for Nuclear Physics for detectors and data acquisition systems. Ideally, the workshop will be an environment to further strengthen the existing collaborations between FRIB and international laboratories and possibly create new ones. View event
  • 30 September 2025
  • 11:00 EDT

Revealing new phases of matter in neutron stars

 Recent advances have enabled precise joint mass–radius measurements of isolated neutron stars through Shapiro-delay observations with NASA’s Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) detector aboard the International Space Station. NICER’s first two data points suggest a weak dependence of radius on mass, with 1.4 and 2.0 solar mass stars showing similar radii. This hints at a stiffening of the neutron star equation of state (EoS), the relation between pressure and density that determines how massive and compact these stars can be. From the theory side, at the densities relevant to neutron stars, the underlying theory of strong interactions, quantum chromodynamics (QCD), cannot be solved directly. Instead, we must model the EoS based on differing assumptions about the relevant microscopic degrees of freedom and test these models against astronomical observations and theoretical predictions. Microscopic EoSs that include beyond proton and neutron degrees of freedom, such as deconfined quarks or hyperons, often exhibit complex behavior in the speed of sound as a function of density. These features affect the relation between the mass and radius of the star. This raises key questions: Are such features compatible with the observed mass-dependence of neutron star radii? How might exotic phases manifest in neutron stars, and do models including them provide a better fit to data than those with only protons and neutrons? How can nuclear experiments help us answer these questions? I will discuss a novel approach using modified Gaussian processes to model such nontrivial features in the EoS [1]. Through a fully Bayesian analysis incorporating NICER data, gravitational-wave observations, and perturbative QCD calculations, I will show that these features are consistent with current observational and theoretical knowledge within uncertainties. Additionally, we find that modeling nontrivial behavior in the EoS is essential for determining the internal composition of neutron stars, particularly at densities around twice nuclear saturation. [1] D. Mroczek, M.C. Miller, J. Noronha-Hostler, and N. Yunes, PRD 110 (2024)
  • 3 October 2025
  • 10:00 EDT

Thermonuclear X-ray bursts: probing neutron stars and a double-photospheric-radius-expansion

 Thermonuclear X-ray bursts observed from neutron stars originate from intermittent unstable nuclear burning of accreted matter on these stars. Such bursts, which significantly outshine the accretion-powered emission, are an excellent tool for probing the strong gravity and superdense matter, as well as for studying nuclear fusion, the flow of matter, and other processes in intense radiation, gravity, and magnetic fields. The strongest ones among such bursts reach the Eddington luminosity and cause a temporary photospheric radius expansion (PRE) due to radiation pressure. We will discuss various aspects of thermonuclear bursts and the first report of two consecutive PRE events within a few seconds during the same burst, which challenges the current theoretical understanding.
  • 14 October 2025
  • 11:00 EDT

From Hadrons to Quarks: Strong Interaction Matter at High Temperature

 I will discuss lattice QCD results on the properties of strong interaction matter at high temperatures. I will show to what extent the properties of this matter can be understood in terms of hadrons up to a certain temperature and how quark degrees of freedom appear as the temperature increases. In a few examples, I will discuss how lattice QCD results help to understand the matter produced in heavy-ion collisions at ultra-relativistic energies and how lattice QCD calculations support the idea of the formation of a nearly perfect fluid in such collisions. View event
  • 24 October 2025
  • 5:30 EDT

Advanced Studies Gateway Concert by the International Chamber Soloists and Dmitri Berlinsky

Join renowned performers, International Chamber Soloists, and Dmitri Berlinsky as they perform Vivaldi’s Four Seasons on October 24, 2025, in the 1300 FRIB auditorium. Berlinsky is an internationally acclaimed violinist who won the Paganini International Violin Competition and has performed with major orchestras worldwide. Based at Michigan State University, the International Chamber Soloists (ICS) is a distinguished group of young string players from around the world. Founded in 2004, it has evolved into a professional ensemble featuring MSU students and musicians from renowned institutions like the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, and Juilliard. View event
  • 26 October 2025
  • 1:00 EDT

Public Talks by Katja Nowack, Cornell University
  • 9 November 2025
  • 1:00 EST

Public Talk by Sophia Economou, Virginia Tech
  • 7 December 2025
  • 1:00 EST

Public Talk by Clifford Jack, Jr.; Neuroradiology, Mayo Clinic