Speaker: Kirit Karkare (Boston University) - Title: On-Chip Millimeter-Wave Spectroscopy for Line Intensity Mapping: SuperSpec and SPT-SLIM
2026-02-12 16:00 - 17:00 UTC
Research Progress Meeting
Date: February 12, 2026
Time: 4:00- 5:00 pm
Location: Sessler Conference Room- 50A-5132 [In-Person and HYBRID]
Speaker: Kirit Karkare, Boston University
Title: On-Chip Millimeter-Wave Spectroscopy for Line Intensity Mapping: SuperSpec and SPT-SLIM
Abstract: Answering outstanding questions in cosmology – such as understanding the nature of inflation, dark energy, and reionization – requires observations of ever-increasing volumes of the universe. In this talk I will discuss how we can use line intensity mapping (LIM) of far-IR emission lines to measure large volumes at high redshift. This technique is enabled by advances in millimeter-wave spectrometer technology. I will present two on-chip spectrometer projects: SuperSpec, which pioneered the concept and was deployed to the Large Millimeter Telescope, and SPT-SLIM, a pathfinder LIM experiment at the South Pole. Both projects saw first light in 2025. I will discuss what we’re learning from their first observations and outline the path towards large, dense focal planes with the sensitivity required for next-generation cosmology.
https://lbnl.zoom.us/j/98854322464?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 988 5432 2464

Passcode: [REDACTED]

Speaker: Jamie Bock (JPL) - Title: Spectrally Mapping the Sky with SPHEREx
2026-02-19 16:00 - 17:00
Research Progress Meeting
Date: February 19, 2026
Time: 4:00- 5:00 pm
Location: Sessler Conference Room- 50A-5132 [In-Person and HYBRID]
Speaker: Jamie Bock, JPL
Title: Spectrally Mapping the Sky with SPHEREx
Abstract: Launched in March 2025, SPHEREx is an all-sky spectral survey satellite designed to address three science goals with a single instrument, a wide-field imager. SPHEREx probes the physics of inflation through measurements of non-Gaussianity by studying large-scale structure, surveying a large cosmological volume at low redshifts. The program charts the origin and history of galaxy formation by mapping large-scale spatial power in two deep fields located near the ecliptic poles. SPHEREx also investigates the origin of water and biogenic molecules in the early phases of planetary system formation – from molecular clouds to young stellar systems with protoplanetary disks – by measuring ice absorption spectra. Following in the tradition of all-sky missions, SPHEREx will be the first all-sky near-infrared spectral survey, producing four complete all-sky maps that will serve as a rich archive for the astronomy community. With over a billion detected galaxies, hundreds of millions of high-quality stellar and galactic spectra, and over a million ice absorption spectra, the archive will enable diverse scientific investigations across astronomy. Our two-year mission recently completed its first map of the full sky. I will share the performance of the instrument in flight and some early results.
https://lbnl.zoom.us/j/98854322464?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 988 5432 2464

Passcode: [REDACTED]

Speaker: Jason Rhodes (JPL) - Title: Mapping the Dark Universe with Euclid
2026-02-26 16:00 - 17:00
Research Progress Meeting
Date: February 26, 2026
Time: 4:00- 5:00 pm
Location: Sessler Conference Room- 50A-5132 [In-Person and HYBRID]
Speaker: Jason Rhodes (JPL)
Title: Mapping the Dark Universe with Euclid
Abstract: After 2 decades of preparation, the European Space Agency’s Euclid space telescope was launched on July 1, 2023. Euclid’s primary goal is to study the dark universe and help us better understand the enigmatic dark matter and dark energy that make up the bulk of the universe. I will talk about my personal journey in bringing Euclid to fruition, give the details of the Euclid telescope and instruments that make it so powerful as a dark energy probe, talk about the science that came out of Euclid’s 60 square degree data release in 2025, plans for science with Euclid’s ~2000 square degree data release in late 2026 and Euclid’s eventual full data release of 14,000 square degrees.
https://lbnl.zoom.us/j/98854322464?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 988 5432 2464

Passcode: [REDACTED]

Speaker: Calvin Leung (UC Berkeley) - Title: From Radio Interferometry to Astrophysics and Cosmology using Fast Radio Bursts
2026-03-05 16:00 - 17:00
Research Progress Meeting
Date: March 5, 2026
Time: 4:00- 5:00 pm
Location: Sessler Conference Room- 50A-5132 [In-Person and HYBRID]
Speaker: Calvin Leung (UC Berkeley)
Title: From Radio Interferometry to Astrophysics and Cosmology using Fast Radio Bursts
Abstract: Since their discovery, Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) have ascended into one of the most exciting areas of astrophysics due to their mysterious origin and emerging broad utility as cosmic probes. I will outline how the CHIME/FRB Outriggers array — a widefield VLBI array — leads this growing field. Next, I will showcase the immense potential of FRBs as probes: of the diffuse baryons in the circumgalactic medium; the feedback processes which drive galaxy evolution; and eventually, how FRB cross correlations with weak lensing surveys may enable clean measurements of dark matter on megaparsec scales.
https://lbnl.zoom.us/j/98854322464?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 988 5432 2464

Passcode: [REDACTED]

Speaker: J. Pedro Ochoa-Ricoux (UIC) - Title: First Physics Results from the JUNO Experiment
2026-03-19 16:00 - 17:00
Research Progress Meeting
Date: March 19, 2026
Time: 4:00- 5:00 pm
Location: Sessler Conference Room- 50A-5132 [In-Person and HYBRID]
Speaker: J. Pedro Ochoa-Ricoux (UIC)
Title: First Physics Results from the JUNO Experiment
Abstract: Neutrinos are elusive particles with unique properties that offer key insights into the fundamental structure of matter and the cosmic sources that produce them. The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) is a next-generation, 20-kiloton liquid scintillator detector, the largest of its kind in the world, located in China and recently brought into operation after more than a decade of design and construction. In this talk, I will review the initial detector performance and present the first results from the experiment, based on about 60 days of data, which provide world-leading estimates of two neutrino oscillation parameters. I will also briefly outline the broader physics program enabled by JUNO and the additional measurements it aims to pursue.
https://lbnl.zoom.us/j/98854322464?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 988 5432 2464

Passcode: [REDACTED]
