Danilo Zavrtanik
Encyclopedia
Danilo Zavrtanik is a Slovenia
n physicist
and professor
.
Born in Nova Gorica
, he graduated in 1979 from the Faculty for Natural Sciences and Technology of the University of Ljubljana
. In 1987, he obtained his PhD by defending a doctoral dissertation on "Angular distribution analysis of the reaction π-p -> π-π+n". From 2006 he is a full professor of physics at the University of Nova Gorica
and the head of its Laboratory for Astroparticle Physics.
Before 1995 he was active in eksperimental particle physics through international collaborations CPLEAR and DELPHI at CERN
, where he was involved in the development of particle detectors, studies of CP, T and CPT violation in the decays of neutral kaons K0 and studies of heavy quark decays, W gauge boson decays and Higgs boson
searches. Since 1995 he is working in the field of astroparticle physics within the Pierre Auger Collaboration
, focusing on studies of cosmic rays with extreme energies. He is a co-author of more than 350 scientific papers and more than 150 conference contributions. He has been a thesis adviser to a number of undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Ljubljana
and the University of Nova Gorica
.
From 1992 to 1996 he served as director-general of the Jožef Stefan Institute
in Ljubljana
. In 1995 he initiated the founding the School of Environmental Sciences in Nova Gorica which grew into Nova Gorica Polytechnic and finally into University of Nova Gorica
. Since the beginning he has been serving as the president of this institution (from 2010 as a rector
).
Among his many honours and awards the most distinguished are: "Order of Merit (Slovenia)" in 2005 "Ambassador of Science of the Republic of Slovenia" in 1997 and "Zois Award" (highest Slovenian award for scientific achievements) in 2004.
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
n physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
.
Born in Nova Gorica
Nova Gorica
Nova Gorica ; 21,082 ; 31,000 ) is a town and a municipality in western Slovenia, on the border with Italy...
, he graduated in 1979 from the Faculty for Natural Sciences and Technology of the University of Ljubljana
University of Ljubljana
The University of Ljubljana is the oldest and largest university in Slovenia. With 64,000 enrolled graduate and postgraduate students, it is among the largest universities in Europe.-Beginnings:...
. In 1987, he obtained his PhD by defending a doctoral dissertation on "Angular distribution analysis of the reaction π-p -> π-π+n". From 2006 he is a full professor of physics at the University of Nova Gorica
University of Nova Gorica
University of Nova Gorica - UNG , is the fourth university in Slovenia. It is located in the towns of Nova Gorica, Gorizia , and Ajdovščina.-History:...
and the head of its Laboratory for Astroparticle Physics.
Before 1995 he was active in eksperimental particle physics through international collaborations CPLEAR and DELPHI at CERN
CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research , known as CERN , is an international organization whose purpose is to operate the world's largest particle physics laboratory, which is situated in the northwest suburbs of Geneva on the Franco–Swiss border...
, where he was involved in the development of particle detectors, studies of CP, T and CPT violation in the decays of neutral kaons K0 and studies of heavy quark decays, W gauge boson decays and Higgs boson
Higgs boson
The Higgs boson is a hypothetical massive elementary particle that is predicted to exist by the Standard Model of particle physics. Its existence is postulated as a means of resolving inconsistencies in the Standard Model...
searches. Since 1995 he is working in the field of astroparticle physics within the Pierre Auger Collaboration
Pierre Auger Observatory
The Pierre Auger Observatory is an international cosmic ray observatory designed to detect ultra-high-energy cosmic rays: single sub-atomic particles with energies beyond 1020 eV...
, focusing on studies of cosmic rays with extreme energies. He is a co-author of more than 350 scientific papers and more than 150 conference contributions. He has been a thesis adviser to a number of undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Ljubljana
University of Ljubljana
The University of Ljubljana is the oldest and largest university in Slovenia. With 64,000 enrolled graduate and postgraduate students, it is among the largest universities in Europe.-Beginnings:...
and the University of Nova Gorica
University of Nova Gorica
University of Nova Gorica - UNG , is the fourth university in Slovenia. It is located in the towns of Nova Gorica, Gorizia , and Ajdovščina.-History:...
.
From 1992 to 1996 he served as director-general of the Jožef Stefan Institute
Jožef Stefan Institute
The Jožef Stefan Institute , is the largest research institute in Slovenia. The main research areas are physics, chemistry, molecular biology, biotechnology, information technologies, reactor physics, energy and environment...
in Ljubljana
Ljubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
. In 1995 he initiated the founding the School of Environmental Sciences in Nova Gorica which grew into Nova Gorica Polytechnic and finally into University of Nova Gorica
University of Nova Gorica
University of Nova Gorica - UNG , is the fourth university in Slovenia. It is located in the towns of Nova Gorica, Gorizia , and Ajdovščina.-History:...
. Since the beginning he has been serving as the president of this institution (from 2010 as a rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
).
Among his many honours and awards the most distinguished are: "Order of Merit (Slovenia)" in 2005 "Ambassador of Science of the Republic of Slovenia" in 1997 and "Zois Award" (highest Slovenian award for scientific achievements) in 2004.