Astroparticle physics (particle astrophysics) is a highly sophisticated and specialized branch of physics which deals with the studies of elementary particles of astronomical origin. Among the various recently introduced courses, this new branch of physics which is a combination of particle physics, astronomy, and cosmology has gained much popularity.

Course Outlook

The Astroparticle Physics course mainly deals with the study of the physical particles which possesses astronomic characteristics. Some specializations in Astroparticle Physics are

• Introduction to Elementary Particles
• Special Relativity
• TeV gamma-ray physics
• Practical examples on statistics
• Instrumentation and Detector Developments
• MC techniques & Data Analysis
• Gamma Astronomy
• High energy processes in the universe such as Active Galactic
• Neutrino Astronomy
• Experimental Measurements of the Parameters of Cosmology
• Cosmology
• Cosmic Microwave background
• Nuclei and Gamma Ray Bursts
• Dark Matter Searches
• Cosmic Rays
• Neutrinoless double-beta decay
• Electromagnetic Interactions of Radiation with Matter etc.

There are many institutes in India like Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Indian Institute of Science, The Inter-University Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, etc that offer various courses in Astroparticle Physics.

Applications

Astroparticle Physics is a new research field involving the concepts and knowledge of astronomy, particle physics and cosmology. As can be understood from the name of this field, Astroparticle Physics deals with the study of particles’ physics particularly those which are astronomical in nature. This highly advanced and specialized branch of physics came to the fore very recently. The main driving force behind its development has been the advancements in field of development of modernized telescopes and progress in the field of spectroscopy.

The studies in this subject consist of the study of axions, magnetic monopoles, neutrinos and their astronomy and gamma-ray astronomy. These subjects are highly advanced and need a mention. Magnetic mono-poles study deals with the study of particles with single polarity. Axions too are electromagnetic particles that can be pulled by gravity. Neutrinos are charged particles that can travel with speed comparable to the speed of light. Neutrino astronomy is a research field where the supernova explosions and nuclear reactions of stars are studied. This subject requires highly advanced telescopes for the research data to be collated. These telescopes can even observe the processes taking place at the core of the sun.  Gamma-ray astronomy is also a related field where studies and researches are conducted on the interstellar gaseous interactions, magnetic fields and electrons, cosmic rays and supernova explosions.

For experimental data collation and observation work, Cherenkov telescopes, GLAST (Gamma-ray large area space telescope), axion solar telescope and neutrino telescopes are utilized primarily.

Hence, it can be easily judged that the applications of this new branch of physics are enormous and far-reaching.