FOR 1254:  Magnetisation of Interstellar and Intergalactic Media: The Prospects of Low-Frequency Radio Observations

• Subject Area: Physics
• Term: from 2010 to 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 108727618

LOFAR, the Low Frequency Array, is a new-generation radio telescope under construction in the Netherlands, Germany and other European countries. It is currently becoming operational incrementally. Its unprecedented sensitivity and angular resolution will open a new window to the low-frequency sky that has been largely neglected in the past, owing to the quest for investigations at higher and higher radio frequencies. With one LOFAR station already operational and four more funded stations, Germany took the lead in the European expansion of LOFAR and in the development of long-baseline observations. "Cosmic Magnetism" is one of six Key Science Projects of LOFAR and is led by German scientists.
Synchrotron polarisation is one of the main tools of this key project. Low-frequency polarisation observations are challenging and require careful tools for observation, calibration and data analysis. The expected data from the commissioning phase (beginning of 2010) and from the full LOFAR array (2010/11) will allow to investigate the distribution and origin of weak, extended magnetic fields in the Milky Way, nearby galaxies and galaxy clusters, and possibly detect magnetic fields from intergalactic filaments for the first time. The Research Unit is to establish a network of experienced German scientists to prepare LOFAR for polarisation observations and for studies of cosmic magnetism.

• DFG Programme: Research Units

Projects

• Central tasks of the Research Unit and general information applicable for all principal investigators (Applicant Klein, Ulrich )
• Commissioning LOFAR for polarisation observations (Applicants Beck, Rainer ;  Klein, Ulrich )
• Dynamos with wind (Applicants Elstner, Detlef ;  Lesch, Harald )
• Faraday Synthesis and Magnetic Field Statistics (Applicant Enßlin, Torsten )
• LOFAR observations of SZ-selected galaxy clusters, and high-fidelity imaging (Applicants Brüggen, Ph.D., Marcus ;  Klein, Ulrich )
• LOFAR total-intensity surveys of nearby galaxies (Applicant Dettmar, Ralf-Jürgen )
• Magnetic fields in nearby galaxies: Low-frequency radio observations (Applicants Beck, Rainer ;  Dettmar, Ralf-Jürgen )
• Magnetic fields in the Milky Way (Applicant Kramer, Michael )
• Magnetic fields in the outskirts of galaxy clusters: Insights from radio relics (Applicants Brüggen, Ph.D., Marcus ;  Hoeft, Matthias )
• Magnetization of the IGM: Role of starburst dwarf galaxies (Applicant Klein, Ulrich )

• Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Ulrich Klein