Atoms and molecules can act like tiny laboratories for sensitive experiments that probe the fundamental structure of matter and search for new laws of physics. Scientists will develop a novel method of unsurpassed accuracy and use high performance computing to calculate parameters needed to support and interpret these challenging experiments.

In the past 25 years cosmology has evolved from a speculative brach of theoretical physics to a precision science on the intersection of gravity, particle- and astro physics. Ever increasing access to big-data probing the structure of our Universe through space and time, will further strengthen the field of cosmology as an empirical science. Despite tremendous achievements, one of the unanswered questions remains how structure in the Universe originated. The PI and collaborators have developed novel techniques and proposed new observables that could help answer this question. Furthermore, the Universe is a product of causal physics, and observables are generally correlated, each presenting a piece of a coherent puzzle describing its origin, which motivates a consistent multi-tracer analysis. The aim of this Vidi project is to find evidence for primordial scale dependence, non-Gaussianity and tensors by means of a joint analysis of large cosmological data in the form of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and redshifted 21cm field. In particular, my research will make progress in three prominent science objectives: to determine the statistical properties of the seeds of structure; to obtain evidence for primordial tensors, determine their source and probe their statistical properties; and to optimally combine multiple observables to find evidence for new physics. These objectives will be pursued using analytical modelling, advanced statistical methods, numerical simulations and data analysis. The PI is a member of the Planck collaboration, and the CORE, Simons Observatory and CMB-S4 working groups, which presents the ideal position to develop this ambitious research program. At the same time, 21cm intensity mapping experiments are currently being built, strongly motivating a detailed study of the capabilities of these experiments. As such, the proposed research will make key contributions towards maximizing the science output of current and future CMB an 21cm surveys.

Wij organiseren The International Conference on Relativistic Effects in Heavy Elements (REHE). Dit is het grootste internationale evenement waar de meerderheid van de theoretische natuurkundigen en scheikundigen die werken aan de zwaarste atomen samenkomen, en wordt elke twee jaar georganiseerd. Het doel van de conferentie is om de meest prominente leden van deze gemeenschap, afkomstig uit praktisch alle continenten (Europa, Azië, Noord en Zuid Amerika, en Oceanië), samen te brengen en een gelegenheid te geven om zowel de meest geavanceerde en recente ontwikkelingen in hun veld te bespreken, als nieuwe samenwerkingen te creëren en bestaande te verdiepen.

Cosmic compass: the Universe as a giant magnet Our Universe is one giant magnet. Invisible lines traverse it across tremendously big distances. Where did they come from? And what story do they tell about the beginnings and the nature of our Universe? Our project, which combines theoretical and numerical methodologies to compare predictions with state-of-the-art astrophysical data, aims to explore and distinguish between possible mechanisms for their appearance. This knowledge will help us advance our understanding not only of our Universe, but also of the laws of physics.

The doubly magic isotope tin-100 which contains 50 protons and 50 neutrons is of special interest for nuclear structure and nuclear astrophysics. Experimental studies of tin-100 are challenging due to the low production yields and large amount of unwanted by-products. Thus, catching a doubly magic tin is like finding a needle in a haystack. In this project we built and commissioned a setup for Chemical Isobaric Separation which will allow us to find a single atom of tin-100 among the impurities. In the future this technique will be applied at accelerator experiments to determine the precise mass of doubly-magic tin.