In the universe, matter exists in four different states: solid, liquid, gas, and plasma. Plasma, the fourth state of matter comprises 99 percent of our known universe, including the stars and the sun.
“Plasma is tricky, its hot, it’s fast and it doesn’t go where you want, which makes for an interesting experimental situation," says Chris Leibs of Plasma Physics (P-24). Leibs is currently attending the Plasma Physics Summer School that is hosted by P-24.
The Plasma Physics Summer School is currently underway and goes through the first week in September. The lectures are scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. every Wednesday at Technical Area 35, (Building 86, Room 205).
All employees are welcome to attend the lectures but undergraduates, graduate students, and present and future technicians are encouraged to attend. No clearance is required.
The goal of the school is to educate students in the fields of plasmas and laser-plasma interactions and to attract long-term student interns as well as prospective upper level students to the Laboratory later on in post-doctoral or staff positions.
“The lectures and the P-24 team are helping me secure an idea as to where I may want to head after my undergraduate studies. I didn't know much about plasma physics prior to the start of the summer, and now I can confidently say I really enjoy the field and am considering it as a potential direction for my future,” said Leibs.
Distinguished invited external speakers as well as staff members and postdocs from the Lab give the weekly lectures.
According to Leibs, the lectures for summer students start with an introduction to plasma physics and require no previous knowledge of the subject. The lectures build in complexity and have examined topics such as magnetohydrodynamics equations, stability, and kinetic theory.
"The theory is multidisciplinary; it is wonderful to have a topic so vast that you have to recall all parts of your education to bring it into perspective. There truly is something to be found by everyone in this study." said Leibs.
For more information, contact Tom Intrator of Plasma Physics at 5-2927 or intrator@lanl.gov by electronic email. Or go to the Plasma Physics Summer School Web site.
