Nuclear Physics Institute (IKP)
IKP is conducting basic research in the fields of nuclear and elementary particle physics. The physics program addresses two big questions of modern physics, namely the matter-anti-matter asymmetry of our universe and a basic understanding of the building blocks matter is comprised of.
The major part of the experimental program is conducted at the cooler synchrotron and storage ring COSY. COSY, comprising unpolarized and polarized sources, the injector cyclotron JULIC and the cooler storage ring, with its capability to provide phase-space cooled proton and deuteron beams with momenta up to 3.7 GeV/c to internal as well as external target stations, is a unique facility on a world-wide scale.
Cooling, beam-diagnostics, spin-manipulation and extraction techniques have been developed and exploited over the years for hadron physics in unpolarized and in single and double polarized experiments. In 2014 IKP terminated the hadron physics program at COSY.
Since 2015 IKP focuses on two topics: (i) developments for FAIR with the two projects HESR and its internal detector system PANDA, and (ii) research and development for a charged-particle storage ring EDM search. For both activities, COSY is essential as an R&D and proof-of-principle facility.
In addition to these major projects, IKP is also pursuing the following smaller research items: (i) hadron physics with electromagnetic probes (CLAS), (ii) exotic atoms (pionic hydrogen and deuterium), (iii) polarized fusion, (iv) polarized molecules, (v) polarized antiprotons (PAX), and (vi) time-reversal invariance violation (TRIC).
