91福利

Paul O'Brien
(University of Leicester)

Title: The prompt emission and progenitors of Gamma-Ray Bursts

Abstract: One of the most important discoveries about GRBs made using the Swift satellite has been the regular observation of emission suggesting complex central engine activity. I will show how the observed light curves place constraints on the standard emission model involving shocks in a relativistic jet and how the data can be used to test whether we are seeing emission powered by a magnetar rather than a black hole. I will conclude by briefly outlining upcoming future facilities for the study of GRBs.

Graphene – Why all the Excitement 91福利 a Layer of Graphite?

Abstract

Within the short time span of five years, graphene, a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb lattice, has risen from obscurity to worldwide attention and fame, not least as a consequence of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics awarded to Geim and Novoselov. This intense interest is due to graphene’s unique physical properties, which are a consequence of its unusual electronic structure (massless “Dirac Fermion” charge carriers), requiring a description in terms of quantum electrodynamics.

Graphene is a model system for 2D solids, and its properties also serve to understand exotic phenomena in other low-dimensional solids. It is also interesting from a materials application perspective, since it has the potential to play an important role in technology (although this is sometimes exaggerated, at least in the popular press). In the talk I will deal with the analysis of graphene’s properties on the basis of experimental data from a range of surface-related techniques. Beyond a characterization of the material itself, issues such as preparation and modification of graphene films and emerging laboratory-type applications will be briefly discussed.