Bridge the Gap

• Laser spectroscopy

  What is matter made of? If we could zoom in to unimaginably small scales, we’d see atoms and gases teeming with electrons in constant motion. Laser spectroscopy is one of the powerful tools scientists use to explore this microscopic world. Birgitta Schulze-Bernhardt will guide us through what we can uncover about the infinitesimally small and how this knowledge impacts the view of the world we live in. References: [1] RP Photonics Encyclopaedia: https://www.rp-photonics.com/encyclopedia.html [2] Optical frequency comb: https://www.nist.gov/topics/physics/optical-frequency-combs [3] Dual-comb spectroscopy: https://opg.optica.org/optica/fulltext.cfm?uri=optica-3-4-414&id=338991 [4] One of Birgitta's team recent paper: Fürst, L., Kirchner, A., Eber, A., Siegrist, F., Di Vora, R., and Bernhardt, B., Broadband near-ultraviolet dual comb spectroscopy, (2024), Optica, Vol. 11, Issue 4, 471, (2024), https://doi.org/10.1364/OPTICA.516783

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  28:07
• Philosophy and Physics - Part 2

  What does one mean by philosophy of physics? How can philosophy help us understand the physical world? In particular, when it comes to quantum mechanics, human intuition seems to break down. Is the wave function real, or is it just a construct we use to make sense of experiments? Is reality truly based on probabilities? In this episode we continue our journey into the relationship between philosophy and physics with Axel Maas and Philip Berghofer from University of Graz. The first part of our conversation with them can be found at episode "Philosophy and Physics - Part 1"References:Axel Maas on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/axelmaas.bsky.socialAxel Maas's webpage: https://particle.uni-graz.at/en/structures-and-observables/Philip Berghofer's webpages: https://uni-graz.academia.edu/PhilippBerghofer, https://philippberghofer.com/ Some slides about philosophy of physics: https://static.uni-graz.at/fileadmin/_Persoenliche_Webseite/maas_axel/urania24.pdfBook "Gauge symmetries, symmetry breaking, and gauge-invariant approaches": https://arxiv.org/abs/2110.00616

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  24:00
• Philosophy and Physics - Part 1

  What does one mean by philosophy of physics? How can philosophy help us understand the physical world?In particular, when it comes to quantum mechanics, human intuition seems to break down. Is the wave function real, or is it just a construct we use to make sense of experiments? Is reality truly based on probabilities? In this episode, Axel Maas and Philip Berghofer from the University of Graz will guide us through the challenges of reconnecting the physical world with the models we use to describe it.References:Axel Maas on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/axelmaas.bsky.socialAxel Maas's webpage: https://particle.uni-graz.at/en/structures-and-observables/Philip Berghofer's webpages: https://uni-graz.academia.edu/PhilippBerghofer, https://philippberghofer.com/ Some slides about philosophy of physics: https://static.uni-graz.at/fileadmin/_Persoenliche_Webseite/maas_axel/urania24.pdfBook "Gauge symmetries, symmetry breaking, and gauge-invariant approaches": https://arxiv.org/abs/2110.00616

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  31:11
• Pigments colors and other shades of physics

  If sunlight is often described as "white," why do we see so many colors? How are colors connected to the wavelengths of light? And what exactly is a wavelength? Anna Galler, a researcher at TU Graz, takes us on a journey through the world of light, pigments, and the fascinating physics behind every shade.References: [1] Kurt Nassau, "The Causes of Color" - published in the October 1980 issue of Scientific American, Volume 243, Number 4, on pages 124-154[2] Kurt Nassau, "The Fifteen Causes of Color: The Physics and Chemistry of Color" - published in the journal Color Research & Application in February 1987 (Volume 12, Issue 1, pages 4-26).

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  23:54
• Paper...

  What do you know about paper? It is a very common "object" in our everyday experience and still there is so much to discover about it! Karin Zojer, Professor at Graz University of Technology, leads us through the fascinating world of simulating real materials, paper included, highlighting the role of experiments in the process. Are you ready to dive in?To tell us what you think about the podcast and/or if you want to take part in the audience participation section, send an email to [email protected] and we will get back to you and set you up. Every feedback is appreciated!

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