Physics - Astrophysics, Relativity, and Cosmology Seminar

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Astrophysics, Gravitation and Cosmology Seminar - Neal Dalal (Perimieter) "AGN HBT OMG"

Event Type
Seminar/Symposium
Sponsor
Department of Physics
Location
Loomis 464
Virtual
wifi event
Date
Sep 13, 2023   12:00 pm  
Speaker
Neal Dalal
Contact
Deanna Frye
E-Mail
ddebord@illinois.edu
Views
85

I’ll discuss an old technique called intensity interferometry, pioneered by Hanbury Brown and Twiss (HBT) that allows us to achieve sub-microarcsecond angular resolution using ordinary ground-based optical telescopes observing visible light.  This technique is best suited for compact, bright sources, and I will discuss applications of intensity interferometry observations of bright, supermassive black holes called active galactic nuclei (AGN).  I’ll discuss three possible applications, including measurement of the Hubble constant H0, probing the innermost structure of quasar accretion disks, and testing GR through observations of photon rings near the black hole horizon.


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