Participating Institutes and their Research Topics

  • Institute for Experimental Particle Physics (ETP) 
    Experimental particle physics at the collider experiments CMS at the CERN LHC and Belle II at SuperKEKB (Japan); Experimental particle physics at future beam-dump experiments SHADOWS at CERN and LUXE-NPOD at DESY; Experimental particle physics at the FCC-ee; Development silicon tracking detectors, algorithm design for event reconstruction, and calorimeters. Astroparticle physics: joint activities with IAP (see below).
  • Institute for Astroparticle Physics (IAP) 
    Fundamental research in the fields of particle- and astroparticle physics in cooperation with international research institutions; neutrino mass measurement at the KATRIN experiment; the direct dark matter search with the experiment XENONnT and the planned experiments DARWIN and DELight;  cosmic ray research at the Pierre Auger Observatory and Tunka-Rex; high-energy neutrinos at the Ice Cube experiment; air shower simulation CORSIKA; theoretical astroparticle physics (neutrinos and dark matter).
  • Institute for Micro- and Nanoelectronic systems (IMS) 
    Development, fabrication, characterization and application of cryogenic quantum sensor and detectors as well as quantum-electronic circuits for tackling scientific, social as well industrial challenges in sensing and detection.
  • Institute for Data Processing and Electronics (IPE) 
    Enable new insights in scientific experiments with the best instruments and methods: we focus on key technologies from detector, packaging and interconnection technology, analog and digital electronics, data transfer, efficient programming and data management.
    KATRIN: control systems, data acquisition and detector development as well as coordination of superordinate tasks and the interfaces between the control systems of the partial experiments.
    Pierre AUGER Observatory: Development, production and installation of the digital electronics for the fluorescence telescopes. This includes the development of a multi-level trigger system, its integration in the data acquisition, the installation of the LAN infrastructure and more.
    AUGER-ACCESS: Auger-Access will allow worldwide access to the Pierre Auger Observatory by the development of remote control and remote monitoring functionalities.
  • Institute for Information Processing Technologies (ITIV) 
    Efforts for a continuous and, to a large extent, automated design process for Methods and Computer-Aided Design Tools. The applicability of the developed concepts is proven by the realization of electronic systems and microsystems. Typical Projects are from the fields automotive, medical technology, telecommunications, system on chip and sensors.
  • Institute for Technical Physics (ITEP) 
    Superconductivity and cryogenics and their applications. The activities span over the areas of nuclear fusion, electric power equipment and high field magnets. Developments of superconductors, especially high temperature superconductors, cryogenic components and the characterisation of lower temperature structure materials.
    A new field in recent years are contributions in cryo-, vacuumtechnique and superconductivity to the large neutrino experiment KATRIN.
  • Institute for Technical Thermodynamic and Refrigeration (ITTK)
    Research and development in refrigeration and cryogenics, in particular vapor compression and absorption cycles, mixed refrigerant circuits, measurement and modelling of phase equilibria, cryogenic separation techniques, liquid helium applications, cryogenic measurement techniques and cryogenic safety.
  • Institute for Theoretical Physics (ITP)   
    Precision calculations in Higgs physics, top quark physics and new physics extensions beyond the Standard Model, Effective Field Theories, investigating mechanisms of electroweak symmetry breaking, baryogenesis, and Dark Matter. Simulations for collisions of particles at highest available collider energies. 
    Together with TTP and IAP, the ITP hosts the Collaborative Research Center TRR 257, "Particle Physics Phenomenology after the Higgs Discovery", offering also opportunities for close collaboration with the Universities in Aachen, Siegen, and Heidelberg.
  • Institute for Theoretical Particle Physics (TTP) 
    We search for hints of physics beyond the Standard Model using precision measurements and global fits of data from particle physics and cosmology. Our main focuses are Higgs, flavour and dark matter physics; we calculate higher-order radiative corrections both within the Standard Model and in dedicated models of new physics. 
    TTP hosts the Collaborative Research Center TRR 257, "Particle Physics Phenomenology after the Higgs Discovery", with scientists from TTP, ITP, IAP, and the universities of Aachen, Siegen, and Heidelberg.
  • Scientific Computing Center (SCC) 
    SCC is the Information Technology center of KIT - center for data-intensive computing and the analysis of large-scale data with high national and international visibility as well as an innovative and agile IT service provider at KIT. Besides various R&D activities in computational and data science, mathematics and computer science, SCC operates large supercomputers for a nationwide audience as well as GridKa, the German Tier-1 data and analysis center for all LHC experiments as well as IceCube, Pierre Auger and Belle-II.
  • Institute for Beam Physics and Technology (IBPT)
    The IBPT operates several particle accelerators for the generation and diagnostics of ultra-short electron bunches. In the Karlsruhe Research Accelerator (KARA), a 110 m long synchrotron light source, electrons are stored at almost the speed of light. The Far-Infrared Linac and Test Experiment (FLUTE), based on a linear accelerator, is designed for systematic studies at the forefront of modern short-pulse accelerators. In the ATHENA project, a laser plasma accelerator is being developed using a terawatt femtosecond laser system at IBPT.

These Institutes contribute to the academic teaching of the Faculties of Physics, Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, Informatics, and Chemical and Process Engineering.