Physics Club

Mathematica Worshop

On 7th and 8th August 2021, a 2day Mathematica workshop was conducted under the guidance of Dr. Vikash Kumar Ojha. On the first day, theory and specifications of Mathematica were addressed. Dr. Vikash assigned the participants with a tutorial, to be solved within the session to gain firsthand knowledge of the new software. Students raised various doubts during the tutorial session, which Dr. Vikash enthusiastically answered. He was glad to solve them and welcomed further questions from the audience. He individually guided everyone in the meet by asking the students to share the screen and show the problem where they were stuck. He explained various concepts in the process of solving the questions. In the third session, participants solved more questions, and then some concepts and problems related to quantum mechanics were addressed. Dr. Yogesh Sonvane was also present in the session for solving doubts about quantum mechanics. Lastly, Dr. Yogesh Sonvane explained how to construct a 3D plot, and then the session was finally concluded. Sarabhai Lecture Series: Talk 1

The first talk of the online Sarabhai Lecture series, presented by Dr. Soumya Bagchi from IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, was a fantastic start attracting many physics enthusiasts from over the country as the professor narrated the story about the "Journey of the Humble Nucleus". Dr. Soumya Bagchi talked about how we can stare into the whole universe by looking into an atomic nucleus with a radius that is almost a trillionth of a meter! Showing that science fiction may not just be fiction for too long, he gave us a lucid insight into the stability of elements. He shared a fun way to visualise these concepts using LEGO blocks implemented at the RICKEN facility in Tokyo, Japan. He talked about Halo nuclei and how they provided an insight into the Shell Model of The Atomic Nucleus discovery, which fetched the Nobel Prize for Maria Goeppert Mayer in 1963. He explained the strange behaviour of higher nuclei in the Island of Inversion and their correlation with the Halo nuclei. Dr. Bagchi also explained the procedures employed by scientists at GSL, Germany, to create exotic and unstable nuclei. He engaged in interesting discussions with the audience and enthusiastically answered their questions.

The second talk of the “Sarabhai Online Lecture Series” conducted on September 11, 2021 by Dr. C.S. Unnikrishnan was a fascinating peek into the world of “Gravitational Waves: The New Wave in Physics, Technology and Astronomy”. The talk attracted almost a hundred physics enthusiasts across the country. Starting with the classical description of gravitation given by Newton, Dr. Unnikrishnan talked about general relativity and how the mad genius Einstein had predicted the presence of gravitational waves in 1960. He spoke about the efforts of various experimentalists across the world for over 60 years to prove the presence of gravitational waves. He gave us a bird’s eye view of the construction of the detectors which were able to catch a faint sound that lasted less than 200 milliseconds, confirming the existence of gravitational waves. He presented the future avenue for research in gravitational physics in India, which inspired the audience towards research. This interactive session concluded with Prof. Unnikrishnan engaging in intriguing discussions about gravitation with the audience. We are grateful for the continued support of the administration, which made this session a complete success.

The third talk of the Online Sarabhai Lecture Series conducted on October 11, 2021 attracted many physics enthusiasts from across the country to tour the “Exotic World of Neutron Stars” with Dr. Sudip Bhattacharyya as our guide.

Dr. Sudip Bhattacharya talked about how every phenomenon that physicists wanted to study could be studied in this body, from particle-particle interactions to curvature of space-time by massive bodies. He spoke about how the neutron stars were used to put the theory of general relativity to rigorous tests before being accepted entirely by all physicists—amazing us that this body can fit into a city. He briefed us about what nature’s laboratory is made of and how it works. Then we glimpsed at the history of research in the field of neutron stars from its discovery to applications. Dr. Bhattacharya explained how a body, lightyears apart, can affect our lives and how we would not have existed if it was not for the presence of these neutron stars. He also showed us the current progress in research in neutron stars and the planned future. In the end, all of us engaged in exciting discussions related to the topic. The fourth talk of the Sarabhai Online Lecture Series by Dr. Manoneeta Chakraborty from IIT Indore, on "Observing Black Holes and Understanding their imprints" was a whopping success attracting many physics enthusiasts from all over the nation.

Dr. Chakraborty explained how different physicists interpreted black holes differently and touched on the unpleasant problem of singularities and the practical solutions. She explained the parameters used to study the physics of black holes and the effect their rotation has on the event horizon. Dr. Manoneeta emphasized the importance of studying black holes and the questions that physicists are still seeking answers to in this field. She talked about the effect of black holes on light rays and even derived the Schwarzschild radius of black holes; which gives us insights into the dimensions of black holes and event horizons. She described various observational techniques employed in black hole research and their challenges. She ended her amazing talk with an exciting interaction with the audience, answering their questions while encouraging them to pursue research.