Particles and Interactions

The purpose of the Doktoratskolleg "Particles and Interactions" (DK-PI) is to combine the expertise on the properties and the interactions of elementary particles and hadronic matter available in theoretical and experimental physics institutions of the University of Vienna, the Vienna University of Technology and two institutes of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (HEPHY and SMI) in order to create a unique and fertile educational and research environment. It shall provide a platform for excellent young scientists who are interested in fundamental questions on the nature and dynamics of matter at the shortest distances and in our universe to carry out their doctoral studies under optimal conditions. Fundamental symmetries together with the interactions and properties of elementary particles and hadronic matter constitute a research field that has seen enormous progress in the past decades. It is now on the threshold of a new era of unprecedented experiments at high energies, high densities, or low energies and high precision. These experiments are expected to shed more light on the origin of mass, the nature of dark matter, the nature of matter inside compact stars and in the early universe, as well as to provide answers toward fundamental questions about the unification of forces, quantum gravity and basic symmetry laws. The DK-PI doctoral program is a research, education and training oriented initiative of excellence. Its purpose is to provide a high profile international research environment for highly qualified PhD students, coupled with a thorough monitoring and advisory framework and a broad educational system that includes introductory and specialized physics courses as well as soft skill courses. The combined skills and expertise within the DK-PI will provide the ground for highly skilled doctoral research work combined with a thorough understanding of all aspects of modern elementary particle physics research. In the environment of the DK-PI the students will acquire the knowledge and skills needed for becoming a competitive participant in the international particle physics research community and to start their own successful career. The DK-PI is actively carried by 12 faculty members of the University of Vienna, the Vienna University of Technology, HEPHY and SMI, and it will be jointly hosted by the Vienna University of Technology and the University of Vienna, where it is integrated in the respective doctoral programs. The scientific and educational basis of the DK-PI will be further extended by cooperations with the International Max-Planck Research School (IMPRS) on Elementary Particle Physics Munich and the Doktoratskolleg W1203 "Hadrons in Vacuum, Nuclei and Stars" of the University of Graz, with whom Memoranda of Understanding have been signed. The DK-PI is part of a new and more global "Vienna Particle Physics" initiative carried by all members of the Vienna particle and nuclear physics community that has already installed a combined Vienna-wide teaching environment and provides the framework for common and coordinated activities concerning research and outreach.