Invited Seminars

IIHE invited seminar: Opening the PeV era in gamma ray astronomy - LHAASO highlight (Domenico Della Volpe)

Europe/Brussels
Description

Abstract:
LHAASO has started taking data in 2021 with its full array. With its large field of view and good performance, it has collected a huge amount  of high quality data. In this of talk we will illustrate the LHAASO instruments and its performances. Later we will go over major achievements and breakthrough results. In the end, we will also give an outlook at the evolution of the array and LHAASO synergies with future instruments.

Short bio:
Professor Della Volpe currently holds a position as a professor at the University of Geneva, where he contributes significantly to the astroparticle pillar of the department. Additionally, he is actively engaged in medical physics through his leadership role in the POSICS project, which aims to develop an innovative portable gamma/beta camera, generously funded by the EU H2020 program.

His primary focus lies within the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO), with a particular emphasis on the Large Size Telescope (LST) collaboration, where he holds the pivotal role of System Lead Engineer. His significant contribution played a crucial role in the success of the Critical Design Review (CDR) of the LST, a milestone achievement that marked it as the first telescope to meet the stringent qualifications for acceptance into the CTAO.
 
His engagement with LHAASO began in 2017 through a collaboration on the WFCTA Camera, where his group supplied the technology for the focal plane. This contribution was notably acknowledged by LHAASO, particularly noteworthy as his group was the sole non-Chinese participant in the experiment and a member of the Institutional Board, underscoring the significance of their involvement.

From 2018 to 2023, Professor Della Volpe chaired the publication committee of LHAASO and served as the main editor of the LHAASO science book. He has also made significant contributions as a contributing author to seminal papers published in prestigious journals such as Nature and Science. His main activity is in CTAO, and in particular in the Large Size telescope collaboration, where he is the System Lead engineer.

In the end 2023, he left LHAASO to focus on new projects. He is one of the PI of the QUASAR project, aimed at pushing the boundaries of Intensity Interferometry to achieve micro arc-second resolution using picosecond light detectors.  Additionally, he is collaborating on the French-Swiss initiative known as LACTEL, which seeks to implement a pioneering concept of a water Cherenkov detector in Lake Geneva, garnering significant interest from the scientific community, including the South West Galactic Observatory (SWGO).
 

Organized by

Steven Lowette