International Summer Research Program in Gravitational-Wave Physics:
Research Experiences for Undergraduates around the world


Virgo group at University of Padova, INFN Padova and Legnaro National Labs
Contact: Dr Giacomo Ciani
The Virgo group in Padova has a long history in experimental gravitational wave research, starting from the early Auriga resonant bar detector and continuing with current participation in the Virgo project, and research for Einstein Telescope and 3rd generation observatories. It is comprised of researchers from University of Padova and the Padova section of INFN (the National Institute for Nuclear Physics). The expertise of the group spans from GW data analysis, with a prominent position in the development of the coherent Wave Burst pipeline, to research in new detector technologies and study of fundamental noise sources. It benefits from contacts and collaborations with local cosmology and astrophysics groups, at the University of Padova and INAF (National Institute of Astrophysics), that pursue cutting-edge research particularly relevant to gravitational-wave physics and multi-messenger astronomy.
The group's research facilities are hosted at the INFN National Labs in Legnaro, a big research center focused on particle physics, located less than 10 km from the center of Padova. The city of Padova, 40 km west of Venice, is rich in day- and night-life, art and history, and has one of the oldest and most prominent universities in Europe: it was founded before 1222, and Galileo Galilei lectured there between 1592 and 1610. Its physics department ranks among the best in Europe.