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Summer Research Programme 2013

Oxford Astrophysics will run a summer research programme for undergraduate physics students. We anticipate taking about 8 students. Students from the second year and above are welcome to apply. Unfortunately we cannot take students from outside the EU unless you already have a work permit.

Students will work with a supervisor in the department, usually a postdoctoral researcher or lecturer, on a self-contained research project. There will also be some lectures on current astrophysics topics. Students are encouraged to take part in department life, joining researchers for coffee, discussions and seminars.

The projects run for typically 8 weeks, nominally June 24th - August 16th. The duration may be adjusted to be shorter or longer, or to accommodate summer travel. Students will be paid via a stipend (provisionally £180 per week). The project is full-time but hours can be discussed with your supervisor.

Applying

You should email a one-page-only application, in pdf format, to Ashling Morris (Ashling [dot] Morris [at] astro [dot] ox [dot] ac [dot] uk) by March 8 2013, with 'Summer intern application' in the subject line. Students should ask for a short academic reference letter to be emailed by the same date. Offers will be made mid-late March.

On your 1-page application you should tell us why you are interested in the programme and which project(s) most interest you. Also include your contact details, your year and course, and contact details (including email) of your academic referee. Please also mention any computer programming experience and any previous research experience.

You are encouraged to informally contact the supervisor(s) to find out more details about the projects that interest you. For any administrative issues, contact Ashling Morris (Ashling [dot] Morris [at] astro [dot] ox [dot] ac [dot] uk). For questions about the program contact Dr Jo Dunkley (j [dot] dunkley [at] physics [dot] ox [dot] ac [dot] uk).

Projects

Here are some of the proposed projects. They span a range of our interests. Most of the research activity involves analytic and computing work.

Gravitational lensing with the Square Kilometre Array

Supervisor: Kris Zarb-Adami

The aim of this project is to use the SKA simulator developed in
Oxford to study how shear and magnification of cosmic sources can be
measured using radio interferometry. Depending on how the project
develops, it will then be possible to compare the SKA and EUCLID in
terms of measuring cosmic shear and how it can be used to determine
cosmological parameters.

Measuring cluster masses with peculiar velocities

Supervisor: Ed Macaulay, Ryan Houghton

Measuring the distribution of the masses of galaxy clusters is one of the ways we can test the ΛCDM cosmological model. The mass is usually inferred from a correlation with the observed x-ray luminosity. In this project, we will try to directly infer the gravitational potential of clusters, by looking at the dispersion of velocities of the galaxies in the cluster. Local galaxy clusters harbour a large number of old Early Type Galaxies (ETGs). To measure the velocities of the ETGs, we will use a method called the Fundamental Plane (FP), which is a relationship between the effective radius, average surface brightness and average velocity dispersion of the stars in the ETGs (Dressler et al. 1987, Djorgovski & Davis 1987). By then comparing this cluster mass estimate to independent mass measurements from x-ray luminosities, we may be able to learn about either the parameters of the Fundamental Plane, the gravitational potential of clusters, or the relationship between x-ray luminosity and cluster mass. The project will involve programming in Python, and using Bayesian parameter estimation techniques such as Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC).

Strong gravitational lensing of distant galaxies

Supervisor: Min-Su Shin

Strong gravitational lensing has been a useful to study
distant galaxies in great detail thanks to its magnification effect.
Modeling lenses and sources is critical to understand how strong
lensing changes the shape and brightness distributions of
observed galaxies. In this summer project, we will focus on
modeling various types of galaxies and how they look in strong
lensing. The project will require programming in Fortran90, C,
or C++ depending on students' current programming skills. Python
programming language will be also used to analyze modeling
results.

Globular clusters in the Milky Way

Supervisor: Min-Su Shin

In the Milky Way, globular clusters move around the Galactic centre
in elliptical orbits. The general properties of globular clusters are
well known. However, some globular clusters show peculiar features
in their chemical or kinetic properties. The goal of this summer
project is to investigate one specific possible scenario that can
alter the properties of globular clusters by using theoretical models.
The project will involve solving differential equations and non-linear
algebraic equations numerically or analytically. Therefore, students
will be encouraged to learn numerical methods and tools to solve those
equations.

Citizen Science with the Zooniverse

Supervisors: Rob Simpson, Brooke Simmons, Chris Lintott

The Zooniverse suite of online projects (zooniverse.org) have enlisted the help of more than 500,000 global volunteers with tasks including galaxy classification, supernova detection, mapping the contents of the Milky Way and even the discovery of extra solar planets. Summer projects with the Zooniverse research team at Oxford can involve handling any of these data to make discoveries. Previous Summer projects include creating new catalogues of star clusters and galaxies using Spitzer Space Telescope data from the Milky Way Project (www.milkywayproject.org) and understanding the properties of merging galaxy systems with data from Galaxy Zoo (www.galaxyzoo.org). Some confidence in computing is a plus, as well as a familiarity with astronomy.

RFI-filtering for the Square Kilometre Array

Supervisor: Kris Zarb-Adami

The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) and other radio telescopes all suffer
from the fact that man-made systems such as TV, Radio and satellites
interfere with the measurements these telescopes were built to
measure. In this project the student will learn to design and build
simple filters that can recognise man-made interference from their
signature and filter out these interferers so that only the science
signal is left.

The Superconducting Tunnel Junction as direct detector

Supervisors: Ghassan Yassin, Khalil Chamcham

Superconductor-­‐Insulator-­‐Superconductor (SIS) devices are the most sensitive coherent detectors at submillimetre wavelengths. They are now routinely used in radio telescopes operating in the frequency range of 100 GHz -­1.0 THz. Their operation is based on photon-­assisted tunneling between two superconductors separated by a very thin insulator (20A0). The response of the detector to a source radiating a monochromatic signal can easily be modeled and measured. In this project we will use the SIS device as a direct detector illuminated by a blackbody at various temperatures. We therefore want to calculate the response of the detectors to a source emitting a continuous frequency spectrum. The student will therefore needs to learn the theory of photon assisted tunneling and then simulate the response to a black body at a given temperature. The student will then have the opportunity to compare the simulations with experimental results.

Contact details

Head of Astrophysics Professor Roger L Davies
Astrophysics Administrator/PA to Head of Astrophysics Vanessa Ferraro-Wood
Telephone 01865 273302 Vanessa Ferraro-Wood
01865 273333 (Switchboard-Denys Wilkinson Building)
Fax 01865 273390

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Seminars

  • 21 Mar 2013

    Satoki Matsushita – Looking at the Feedback Mechanisms of Starbursts and AGNs through Molecular Outflows

  • 17 May 2013

    Lisa Fogarty – TBC

  • 19 Jun 2013

    Siegfried Eggl – TBC

Astro Blog

  • Stargazing Oxford photo competition: The results are in!
  • Moving objects, and non-moving telescopes!
  • Stargazing Oxford 2013 Project : Comet ISON
  • Jupiter and the Galilean Moons
  • Stargazing Oxford 2013 photo competition

News

  • 21 February 2013

    Stargazing podcast series available now

  • 8 February 2013

    The Steve Rawlings Memorial Fund

  • 4 February 2013

    New Blogs section

  • 24 December 2012

    Final cosmology results from the WMAP satellite

  • 28 August 2012

    Department of Physics awarded Athena Swan Bronze Award

  • 31 July 2012

    Physics newsletter 2012 now available

  • 20 July 2012

    STFC Ernest Rutherford Fellowships

  • 3 July 2012

    2012 Institute of Physics Prizes

  • 26 June 2012

    Mihran Vardanyan & Chris Boddy awarded prizes by OxTALENT 2012

  • 21 June 2012

    Neutrinos put cosmic ray theory on ice

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