[en] SNOLAB is a new international facility for Underground Physics that has just begun operations in Sudbury, Canada. In the following we present the current status of the facility and describe the experimental program and the infrastructure available to support the program.

[en] SNOLAB is a new international facility for Underground Physics currently nearing completion in Sudbury, Canada. In the following we present the status of both the construction project and the basic infrastructure available in support of the experiments. The status of the scientific programme, focused on dark matter searches, neutrinoless double beta decay, neutrinos and supernovae monitoring is also described.

[en] We develop a method for investigating the relationship between the shape of a 1-particle distribution and non-linear electrostatic oscillations in a collisionless plasma, incorporating transverse thermal motion. A general expression is found for the maximum sustainable electric field, and is evaluated for a particular highly anisotropic distribution.

[en] The covariant Vlasov-Maxwell system is used to study the breaking of relativistic warm plasma waves. The well-known theory of relativistic warm plasmas due to Katsouleas and Mori (KM) is subsumed within a unified geometric formulation of the 'waterbag' paradigm over spacetime. We calculate the maximum amplitude E_max of nonlinear longitudinal electric waves for a particular class of waterbags whose geometry is a simple three-dimensional generalization (in velocity) of the one-dimensional KM waterbag (in velocity). It has been shown previously that the value of lim_v→cE_max (with the effective temperature of the plasma electrons held fixed) diverges for the KM model; however, we show that a certain class of simple three-dimensional waterbags exhibit a finite value for lim_v→cE_max, where v is the phase velocity of the wave and c is the speed of light.

No abstract available

[en] Next-generation high-power laser facilities (such as the Extreme Light Infrastructure) will provide unprecedented field intensities, and will allow us to probe qualitatively new physical regimes for the first time. One of the important fundamental questions which will be addressed is particle dynamics when radiation reaction and quantum effects play a significant role. Classical theories of radiation reaction predict beam cooling in the interaction of a relativistic electron bunch and a high-intensity laser pulse, with final-state properties only dependent on the laser fluence. The observed quantum suppression of this cooling instead exhibits a dependence on the laser intensity directly. This offers the potential for final-state properties to be modified or even controlled by tailoring the intensity profile of the laser pulse. In addition to beam properties, quantum effects will be manifest in the emitted radiation spectra, which could be manipulated for use as radiation sources. We compare predictions made by classical, quasi-classical and stochastic theories of radiation reaction, and investigate the influence of chirped laser pulses on the observed radiation spectra. - Highlights: • Classical theories of radiation reaction predict electron beam cooling in high fields. • Quantum effects lead to a reduction in electron beam cooling. • Quasi-classical model agrees with predictions from a single-emission stochastic model. • Negative frequency chirp found to increase photon emission, but not maximum energy.

[en] We develop a new method for describing the dynamics of 3-dimensional thermal plasmas. Using a piecewise constant 1-particle distribution, we reduce the Vlasov equation to a generalized Lorentz force equation for a family of vector fields encoding the discontinuity. By applying this equation to longitudinal electrostatic plasma oscillations, and coupling it to Maxwell's equations, we obtain a limit on the magnitude of the electric field in relativistic thermal plasma oscillations. We derive an upper bound on the limit and discuss its applicability in a background magnetic field.

[en] Contemporary attempts to explain the existence of ultra-high energy cosmic rays using plasma-based wakefield acceleration deliberately avoid non-standard model particle physics. However, such proposals exploit some of the most extreme environments in the Universe and it is conceivable that hypothetical particles outside the standard model have significant implications for the effectiveness of the acceleration process. Axions solve the strong CP problem and provide one of the most important candidates for cold dark matter, and their potential significance in the present context should not be overlooked. Our analysis of the field equations describing a plasma augmented with axions uncovers a dramatic axion-induced suppression of the energy gained by a test particle in the wakefield driven by a particle bunch, or an intense pulse of electromagnetic radiation, propagating at ultra-relativistic speeds within the strongest magnetic fields in the Universe. (paper)

[en] This seminar deals with the following topics: recommendations and tools to define the consumption profile (electric power and natural gas); the gas and the electric power prices; the negotiation of the energy purchase contracts and the energy supplier choice; recommendations concerning the offer tender organization and management. (A.L.B.)

No abstract available