RUI: Quantum Kinetics of Neutrinos: a window on nuclear and particle astrophysics in the Early Universe and Compact Objects

RUI：中微子的量子动力学：早期宇宙和致密天体中核和粒子天体物理学的窗口

基本信息

批准号：
1812383
负责人：
Chad Kishimoto
金额：
$ 18万
依托单位：
University of San Diego
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Continuing Grant
财政年份：
2018
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2018-08-15 至 2022-07-31
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1812383&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
RUI Quantum Kinetics Neutrinos window

项目摘要

Neutrinos are particles that travel through the universe at the speed of light, but very rarely interact with matter. Trillions of neutrinos pass through our bodies every second without leaving a trace. In hot and dense astrophysical environments, prodigious numbers of neutrinos significantly impact each other and their environment. Here, neutrinos play an important role in energy transport, affecting the dynamics of these environments, and in converting protons to neutrons and vice-versa, affecting the synthesis of elements. Therefore, understanding how neutrinos evolve is essential to addressing intriguing topics in astrophysics, including understanding the origins of the elements and using precise observations to elucidate fundamental physics. The PI will train undergraduate researchers, engaging them in various skills that are valuable across a range of 21st century careers. They will simulate numerically the evolution of neutrinos in astrophysical environments and their concomitant effect on their environment. This evolution is complicated by the quantum mechanical nature of particles, interactions of neutrinos with other neutrinos, and the high rate at which they collide. In addition to mentoring undergraduate researchers, the PI will broaden the impact of this project by enhancing outreach projects run by the Society of Physics Students chapter at the University of San Diego. This project will study the evolution of neutrinos in hot and dense astrophysical environments where prodigious fluxes of neutrinos affect the dynamics of their environment. Here, neutrino evolution is complicated by their nonlinear evolution due to neutrino-neutrino interactions, their coherent, quantum mechanical behavior, and their high scattering rates (kinetics) that influence the aforementioned effects. In environments such as the early universe, within the first second after the Big Bang, and the explosive end of stars' lives, this nonlinear quantum kinetic behavior plays an important role because neutrinos transport energy over large length scales and govern the interconversion between protons and neutrons. These effects need to be self-consistently understood in order to better understand the synthesis of the elements and to perform the high-precision calculations needed to complement high-precision cosmological observations that look to use the universe as a laboratory to study fundamental physics. The quantum kinetic equations for neutrino evolution in astrophysical environments are known. The goal of this project is to solve these equations in astrophysical environments toward toward gaining a broader understanding of the nonlinear quantum kinetic evolution of neutrino states and to elucidate the feedback of this evolution on the astrophysical environments.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

中微子是以光速穿过宇宙的颗粒，但很少与物质相互作用。数万亿个中微子每秒通过我们的身体而没有留下痕迹。在炎热和密集的天体物理环境中，大量的中微子及其环境显着影响。在这里，中微子在能量传输中起着重要作用，影响了这些环境的动力学，并将质子转化为中子和反之亦然，从而影响元素的综合。因此，了解中微子进化如何对于解决动物的天体物理学中的有趣主题至关重要，包括了解元素的起源并使用精确的观察结果来阐明基本物理学。 PI将培训本科研究人员，使他们参与各种21世纪职业的各种技能。他们将在天体物理环境中进行数值模拟中微子的演变及其对环境的伴随影响。这种进化因颗粒的量子机械性质，中微子与其他中微子的相互作用以及它们碰撞的高速率而变得复杂。除了指导本科研究人员外，PI还将通过加强圣地亚哥大学物理学会分会开展的外展项目来扩大该项目的影响。该项目将研究中微子在热和密集的天体物理环境中的演变，中微子的巨大通量会影响其环境的动态。在这里，由于中微子 - 中微子的相互作用，它们的连贯性，量子机械行为及其高散射速率（动力学），中微性的进化使它们的非线性进化变得复杂，从而影响上述效应。在诸如早期宇宙之类的环境中，在大爆炸之后的第一秒内以及恒星生命的爆炸末端，这种非线性量子动力学行为起着重要作用，因为中微子在大长度上传输能量并控制质子和中子之间的相互转换。为了更好地了解元素的综合，并执行补充高精度宇宙学观察结果所需的高精度计算，这些效果需要自信地理解，以更好地理解元素的综合计算，这些计算将宇宙用作研究基本物理学的实验室。在天体物理环境中中微子进化的量子动力学方程是已知的。该项目的目的是在天体物理环境中求解这些方程式，以更广泛地了解中微子状态的非线性量子动力学演化，并阐明这种进化对天体物理环境的反馈。该奖项奖反映了NSF的法定任务，并通过评估基金会的Merit和Broadial and tocriatial and tocriatial and tocriatial and tocriatial and tocriatial and Broadial and tocriatial and tocriatial and tocriatial and tocriatial和broaditial和broaditial and tocriatial and tobrit。