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NSF OPAL

Organization

The MP3 workshop organization comprises two phases:

(1) virtual meetings of four working groups (WGs) focused on the scientific topical areas with WG leaders listed below; and

(2) an in-person workshop to discuss and prioritize the top science goals and corresponding experiments identified by the working groups.

High-Field Physics and Quantum Electro-Dynamics (HFP/QED)

  • Alexey Arefiev (UCSD)
  • Tom Blackburn (U. Gothenburg)
  • Stepan Bulanov (LBNL)
  • Dmitri Uzdensky (CU Boulder)

Laboratory Astrophysics (LAP)

  • Gianluca Gregori (Oxford)
  • Hye-Sook Park (LLNL)
  • Eva Zurek (U. Buffalo)

Particle Acceleration and Advanced Light Sources (PAALS)

  • Sudeep Banerjee (ASU)
  • Gennady Shvets (Cornell Univ.)
  • Scott Wilks (LLNL)

Laser-Driven Nuclear Physics (LDNP)

  • Calvin Howell (Duke Univ.)
  • Markus Roth (TU Darmstadt)
  • Kazuo Tanaka (ELI-NP)
  • Klaus Spohr (ELI-NP)

The figure below illustrates the MP3 workshop process. This notional timeline will be subject to change as the process moves forward and adapt to conditions relative to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chairs and WG leaders will first establish the processes and tools for the next stages that include the means for:

  • setting dates and times for WG meetings that do not conflict so individuals may participate in more than one, if desired,
  • maintaining MP3 participants contact information,
  • holding virtual meetings (probably Zoom),
  • collaborative file sharing (probably Google Drive), and
  • establishing channels for WGs and workshop organizers to communicate that avoids diverging email threads (possibly Slack or MS Teams).Graphic detailing the beginning to end process leading up to a workshop.A series of monthly virtual WG meetings for each topic will enable sufficient time, broad participation and opportunities for diverse research communities to mix such that the resulting synergy will provide plenty of new ideas and interdisciplinary proposals.
    MP3 virtual sessions in preparation for the main workshop – all are welcome to join the virtual sessions (via Zoom, email to be emailed to MP3 mailing list).

    Date Day / Time Group / Topic
    Mar-16-2022 Wednesday, 11am ET PAALS
    Mar-23-2022 Wednesday, 11am ET LDNP / Theme 3
    Mar-24-2022 Thursday, 11am ET LAPD / Theme 2
    Mar-28-2022 Monday, 11am ET HFS/QED / Theme 1
    Mar-30-2022 Wednesday, 11am ET PAALS
    Apr-4-2022 Monday, 11am ET LAPD / Theme 2
    Apr-5-2022 Tuesday, 11am ET LDNP / Theme 3
    Apr-13-2022 Wednesday, 11am ET HFS/QED / Theme 1

    In these sessions, the working group leaders will lead discussions about the science questions and materials developed for the final report.

This will address topics such as:

  • Background and introduction to the science question
  • Progress using current facilities
  • Theoretical understanding
  • Flagship experiments requiring new capabilities
  • Flagship experiments requiring next-generation facility capabilities
  • Broader impacts

WG leaders will identify and invite participants to prepare actionable material for consideration at the MP3 workshop with the aim of broad inclusion and diversity to garner the most promising new ideas for research and development enabled by new generations of powerful lasers.

Working group leaders will solicit white papers for potential scientific goals and flagship experiments, diagnostic needs and strategies, and visions for what a next-generation facility might require. A white paper template will outline inputs required for discussion. Each WG will discuss white papers during virtual meetings with the aim of identifying their scientific impact and readiness with particular attention to defining: coordinated experimental campaigns, theoretical studies, diagnostic- and facility-capability developments, and facility access needed to realize the identified scientific goals.

A WG crosscheck #1 midway through the process will gather MP3 chairs and WG leaders to present progress and start the down-selection process for material to include in a draft workshop report with an eye towards seeking synergies.

Additional virtual WG meetings will focus on preparing and discussing draft report sections and presentations for the in-person workshop. WG crosscheck #2 will review progress and start assembling the draft workshop report. A final set of WG virtual meetings will enable discussions

This process will culminate in an in-person workshop to discuss the top-priority science goals and corresponding experimental programs identified by the working groups and captured in the draft workshop report. The workshop will approve a final report to recommend coordinated plans for U.S. and European research communities. Webcasting the workshop plenary sessions will enable a broad range of individuals and institutions to participate.

A publicly available workshop report will summarize the outcomes and recommend coordinated plans for U.S. and European research communities over the next ten to twenty years. The report will also include material suitable for outreach to the public, such as a press release, fact sheets, posters, and video interviews describing the scientific opportunities and social benefits made possible by multi-petawatt lasers.