Home

FRIB Theory Alliance Mission and Initiatives

The mission of the FRIB Theory Alliance (FRIB-TA) is to foster advancements in theory related to diverse areas of FRIB science; optimize the coupling between theory and experiment; and stimulate the field by creating permanent theory positions across the country, attracting young talent through the national FRIB Theory Fellow Program, fostering interdisciplinary collaborations, and shepherding international initiatives.

In support of this mission, the FRIB-TA carries out a range of initiatives, including

  • National FRIB Theory Fellow program. The FRIB Theory Fellowship is a five-year research position at a participating institution, which includes an independent annual budget for travel and visitors. The Fellow is expected to develop high-caliber work on important theoretical problems relevant to research with FRIB. See FRIB-TA Theory Fellows: Guidance for Searches for guidelines.
  • FRIB Bridge program. This program enhances the opportunities of Theory Faculty hires at Universities or Theory Staff hires at National Labs by providing supplemental funding. The FRIB Theory Faculty hired into this program would develop research relevant for FRIB, and would be requested to spend some time at FRIB. See FRIB-TA Theory Bridge Program: Guidance for Applications for guidelines.
  • FRIB Theory Visiting program. To enable continuous in interactions between theory and experiment, and across the various sub-areas, it is critical that theorists come together and spend time at FRIB. Investment in travel will allow not only the new generation, such as the FRIB Theory Fellows and Bridge Faculty, to engage in fruitful discussions and instigate new collaborations, but also enable coordinated mobility of other theorists participating in FRIB science and working in the U.S. and worldwide.
  • FRIB-TA Topical Programs. Topical programs bring together up to 30 theorists and experimentalists for a period of up to three weeks to address particular issues relevant for the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams. Researchers are expected, during that time, to discuss the problem, identify strategies and collaborate on solutions. At the end of the topical program, a deliverable must be made available. The programs will be hosted at FRIB and the FRIB Theory Alliance will support local costs for participants. See Topical Programs.
  • Training the next generation of scientists. A thorough knowledge of up-to-date theoretical methods and phenomenology will be required to tackle the theoretical and experimental challenges that will be faced by the next generation of nuclear physicists working in FRIB science. The FRIB-TA will launch an education initiative, coordinated with the TALENT (Training in Advanced Low-Energy Nuclear Theory) initiative, to develop a broad, modern, and attractive curriculum addressing the nuclear many-body problem and related areas, delivered using modern educational technologies. See Education Initiatives.
  • High performance computing. Reaching the full potential of the FRIB research program requires comprehensive investigations of many questions that can only be addressed using world-leading computational facilities. The FRIB-TA will foster the interactions between computer scientists, applied mathematicians, and FRIB theorists, to continue to tackle the challenges that neither experiment nor analytical theory can address. The FRIB-TA also aims to develop and maintain a software library that can be used for theoretical and experimental analyses as well as a source for training and educating the next generation of nuclear scientists.
  • International cooperation. With the wider spread of world-leading experimental facilities, international networking will become more important in the future. The FRIB-TA will promote and facilitate international initiatives, such as EUSTIPEN, and CUSTIPEN, which are theory exchange programs, and International Collaborations in Nuclear Theory (ICNT), which coordinates theory topical programs to address theoretical issues relevant to the participating laboratories.
  • Reaching out to the broader community. This includes theory participation in outreach activities organized and coordinated by FRIB, but also building bridges to other scientific communities. The FRIB-TA seeks to strengthen the connection to the astronomy-cosmology-astrophysics, fundamental interaction physics, high-energy, atomic, and condensed matter communities, working together with JINA-CEE, ACFI, and the INT.

FRIB-TA support for workshops, conferences and schools

Workshops, conferences and schools may request FRIB-TA funding if the topic aligns with the broad scientific vision of the FRIB-TA and if the FRIB-TA is involved in the organization early in the process. Funding can only be used to off-set actual costs for travel, lodging and per-diem for early career scientists, post-doctoral fellows or students involved in the activity. The FRIB-TA Director, with concurrence of the managing director, will make decisions regarding funding external activities and will consult with the FRIB-TA Board as necessary on these decisions.