Callum Jones, University of Arizona
When
Where
Title: From Gluons to Gravitational Waves
Abstract: Precise experimental physics requires precise theoretical predictions. In this colloquium I will give an introduction to modern “on-shell” approaches to the calculation of perturbative scattering amplitudes in quantum field theory and their (surprisingly diverse) application to other areas of high-energy physics. These methods both enable seemingly intractable calculations (many loops, many legs) and reveal hidden simplicity and symmetries that can then be leveraged to make even further progress. In particular, I will describe how state-of-the-art tools from collider physics, nuclear physics, critical phenomena and string theory come together to enable spectacular new calculations in particle physics, gravitational wave astrophysics and early-universe cosmology. I will also briefly describe my own recent/ongoing efforts to apply these methods to understanding horizon absorption contributions to binary black hole dynamics and to constraining the interactions of light spinning particles during inflation.
3:00 PM in PAS 201 / Zoom Meeting https://arizona.zoom.us/j/86395646910
Refreshments in PAS 236, 2:30PM