Astroparticle and Cosmology Laboratory explained

AstroParticle and Cosmology laboratory
Native Name:AstroParticule et Cosmologie (APC)
Type:Mixed Research Unit (UMR)
Director:Antoine Kouchner
Academic Staff:157
Administrative Staff:14
Doctoral:31
City:Paris
Country:France
Campus:Paris Rive Gauche (location)
Affiliations:Paris Diderot University, CNRS, CEA, Paris Observatory

The Astroparticle and Cosmology (APC) laboratory in Paris gathers researchers (experimentalists, theorists and observers) working in different areas including high-energy astrophysics, cosmology, gravitation, and neutrino physics.[1]

The institute was founded in January 2005 [2] [3] and soon moved to new campus of Paris Diderot University in the Paris Rive Gauche area.

The laboratory is a "Mixed Research Unit" in French terminology, funded by Paris Diderot University, the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (represented by three of its Institutes: mainly IN2P3, but also INSU and INP), the Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives, and the Paris Observatory.

The first director of the laboratory was Pierre Binétruy (2005-2013). From January 2014 until December 2017 the director was Stavros Katsanevas, followed by Sotiris Loucatos, and Antoine Kouchner (since July 2018).

Research activities

Cosmology

This group, headed by Cyrille Rosset, includes two main areas of research:

  1. Experimental investigation of the cosmic microwave background, including attempts to detect CMB polarization B-modes, which could provide support for the theory of Inflation. Researchers were involved in the Planck space mission[4] and are now active in the QUBIC experiment,[5] the Simons Observatory, and the LiteBIRD satellite.
  2. Cosmological analysis of large spectroscopic and imaging surveys for the determination of constraints on the nature of dark energy. Researchers are involved in the wide-field observatories aimed at understanding the nature of dark energy: the large field Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey[6] telescope, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory[7] and the Euclid space mission[8]

High-energy astrophysics

Research carried out by this group, headed by Anne Lemière, aims at understanding the violent phenomena of the universe (mostly within compact stars, neutron stars, or black holes). The group is engaged in many international projects with telescopes or instruments detecting photons, cosmic rays, or neutrinos. For the observation of:

  1. gamma rays, it is involved in the INTEGRAL observatory,[9] the High Energy Stereoscopic System,[10] the Cherenkov Telescope Array,[11] and the Space Variable Objects Monitor[12]
  2. cosmic rays of ultra-high energy, it is involved in JEM-EUSO[13]
  3. neutrinos, it is involved in the ANTARES[14] and KM3NeT projects[15] collaborations
  4. X-rays, it was involved in the space mission Hitomi[16]

Neutrinos

The research carried out by this group, headed by Davide Franco, is dedicated to understanding neutrino properties is one of the laboratories' main activities. Researchers are involved in studies of the phenomenon of oscillation (Borexino, Double Chooz)[17] [18] and on future projects addressing the measurement of the neutrino mass hierarchy with atmospheric neutrinos with the deep-sea water Cherenkov telescope Orca[19] and the long-baseline neutrino oscillation project Laguna-LBNO.[20]

Gravitation

This core research of this group led by Stanislav Babak is the direct detection of gravitational waves. The group is involved in both ground-based (Virgo interferometer)[21] and space-based (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna and its precursor LISA Pathfinder) instruments.[22]

Theory

This group, headed by Dmitri Semikoz, covers the research topics of the laboratory from a theoretical perspective. It also carries out work on other areas of fundamental physics.

Organization

The staff of the laboratory consists of 75 permanent researchers and over 60 engineers, technicians, and administrative personnel, plus about 125 non-permanent employees (PhD students, postdoctoral fellows, visitors). In addition, the Paris Center for Cosmological Physics directed by George Smoot is also part of the laboratory[23] and one of the three functional centres of the Astroparticle Physics European Consortium is based here.[24]

An "International Associated Laboratory" in astroparticle physics was launched in September 2007. It associates the APC laboratory with the Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology (Stanford University).[25]

Evaluation

The laboratory has been evaluated twice by the AERES: in 2008[26] and in 2013.[1] In the latter evaluation, the lab won excellent scores (A or A+ in all criteria).

Astroparticle Physics European Consortium

Astroparticle Physics European Consortium (APPEC) is a consortium of organizations from European countries that coordinate and fund research in astroparticle physics.[27]

External links

48.8294°N 2.3819°W

Notes and References

  1. 2013 . AERES report on unit . 14 January 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140116132011/http://www.aeres-evaluation.fr/content/download/21609/332919/file/D2014-EV-0751723R-S2PUR140006408-003197-RD.pdf . 16 January 2014 . dead .
  2. January 2005 . Astroparticle physics and cosmology laboratory opens in Paris . CERN Courier . CERN . 14 January 2014.
  3. March–May 2005 . A Successful Interaction . Magazine Observatoire de Paris . Observatoire de Paris . 1 . 7 . Created the 1st January 2005, APC is managed, other than by the Paris Diderot University, by the CNRS 1, the CEA 2 and the Observatoire de Paris.. 13 January 2014.
  4. Web site: The Planck Satellite website . Prof.planck.fr . 2009-04-03 . 2014-01-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140115154210/http://prof.planck.fr/heading8.html . 15 January 2014 . dmy .
  5. Web site: [QUBIC website ] |publisher=Prof.qubic.fr |date=2009-04-03 |access-date=2014-01-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140116122235/http://www.qubic-experiment.org/ |archive-date=16 January 2014 |url-status=dead ].
  6. Web site: SDSS-III Institutions - SDSS-III . Sdss3.org . 2014-01-14.
  7. Web site: Archived copy . 2014-01-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140115091605/http://www.btopper.com/apc.pdf . 15 January 2014 . dmy .
  8. Web site: Euclid Consortium | A space mission to map the Dark Universe . Euclid-ec.org . 2014-01-14.
  9. Web site: ESA Science & Technology: INTEGRAL reveals new facets of the Vela pulsar wind nebula . Sci.esa.int . 2012-01-25 . 2014-01-14.
  10. Web site: H.E.S.S. - The High Energy Stereoscopic System . Mpi-hd.mpg.de . 2013-06-04 . 2014-01-14.
  11. Web site: Members of the CTA Consortium . Portal.cta-observatory.org . 2013-11-22 . 2014-01-14 . 21 July 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150721172751/https://portal.cta-observatory.org/Countries/Pages/default.aspx . dead .
  12. Web site: Télescope ECLAIRs . www.svom.fr . 2018-07-27.
  13. Web site: EXTREAME UNIVERS SPACE OBSERVATORY ONBOARD JAPANESE EXPERIMENT MODULE: Members . 14 January 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140116075215/http://jemeuso.riken.jp/en/members.html . 16 January 2014 . dead . dmy-all .
  14. Web site: ANTARES collaboration . Antares.in2p3.fr . 2014-01-14 . 24 May 2001 . https://web.archive.org/web/20010524155944/http://antares.in2p3.fr/Collaboration/index.html . dead .
  15. Web site: Opens a new window on our universe . KM3NeT . 2013-12-27 . 2014-01-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140116074329/http://www.km3net.org/France.php . 16 January 2014 . dmy .
  16. Web site: Archived copy . 2014-01-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140116070036/http://www.isdc.unige.ch/astroh/images/ewas2012sps8/Laurent_highenergy.pdf . 16 January 2014 . dmy .
  17. Web site: Paolo Saggese . Borexino Experiment Official Web Site . Borex.lngs.infn.it . 2014-01-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20071016122025/http://borex.lngs.infn.it/ . 16 October 2007 .
  18. Web site: Double Chooz Web Page . Doublechooz.in2p3.fr . 2012-02-16 . 2014-01-14.
  19. Web site: ORCA Status 281112 . www.apc.univ-paris7.fr.
  20. Web site: Patzak-CERN-261113 . February 10, 2024 . indico.cern.ch.
  21. Web site: Virgo collaboration data base . https://archive.today/20140114142941/https://pub3.ego-gw.it/itf/Members_DB/Private/Institut_List.php . dead . 2014-01-14 . Pub3.ego-gw.it . 2014-01-14 .
  22. Web site: LISA - LISA Pathfinder - Collaboration . Lisa.aei-hannover.de . 2014-01-14.
  23. Web site: [The PCCP website ] |access-date=2014-01-14 |archive-date=19 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140219020928/http://pariscosmo.in2p3.fr/en |url-status=dead ].
  24. Web site: Appec - Apc . 15 January 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304032010/http://193.146.122.114:8888/appec/about/functional-centers/apc.html . 4 March 2016 . dead .
  25. Astroparticle Physics Labs Join Forces . CNRS International Magazine . October 2007 . 8.
  26. 2008 . Rapport du comité d'experts . fr . 14 January 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140116132016/http://www.aeres-evaluation.fr/content/download/11995/174662/file/AER_P07_006-2.pdf . 16 January 2014 . dead .
  27. Web site: About . APPEC . 21 September 2022.