• Physics and Astronomy Colloquium

February 23, 2024 3:30 PM

Host:

Dinesh Loomba

Presenter:

Dr. Henric Krawczynski (Washington Univ)

Video Recording

The Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) is a joint US-Italian mission that enables highly sensitive polarimetry observations of bright galactic and extragalactic sources within the 2-8 keV X-ray band. In this talk, I will focus on the IXPE findings since its launch in 2021, particularly the observations of mass accreting stellar mass black holes, and magnetars. The black hole observations allow us to study the processes that lead to mass accretion onto black holes. The magnetar observations shed light on the properties of the neutron star surface and atmosphere, the configuration of the magnetic fields surrounding the neutron star, as well as on properties of the quantum vacuum. I will close by describing several upcoming and planned balloon borne astroparticle physics missions that I am working on.