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 Physics at Virginia

"Surfing on a Plasma Wave - Can a Grand Challenge for Engineering Answer the Big Questions of Physics?"


Thomas Katsouleas , Provost and Department of Physics UVA
[Host: Joseph Poon]
ABSTRACT:

The National Academy of Engineering has identified 14 Grand Challenges for Engineering for the 21st Century, spanning human needs from sustainability to security, health and joy of living.  The last category includes such topics as engineering the tools of scientific discovery. This talk will include a brief review of the NAE Grand Challenges and the response of higher education to the Challenges, and will conclude with a review of one Grand Challenge topic:  the development of ultra-compact particle accelerators based on surfing at (nearly) the speed of light on waves created by lasers or particle beams in a plasma gas. The prospects of these devices as tools of scientific discovery as well as beam therapy will be discussed.

VIDEO:
Colloquium
Friday, October 16, 2015
3:30 PM
Physics Building, Room 204
Note special room.

 Slideshow (PDF)
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