Welcome to my webpage
Here you will find info about my research, my current projects, my papers and if you are a student looking to work with me future projects I'd like to pursue. If you can't find what you are looking for then please do get in touch.
Dimitra Rigopoulou
Professor of Astrophysics
Department of Physics
University of Oxford
Email:
dimitra.rigopoulou@physics.ox.ac.uk
Address: Denys Wilkinson Building
University of Oxford
Keble Road
Oxford, OX1 3RH
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RESEARCH
PUBLICATIONS
My publications can be found here
PhD Projects
offered for entry in September 2018
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Galaxy Evolution
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Ultra luminous Infrared Galaxies
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Galaxy Surveys
The Interstellar Medium in Galaxies
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PolyAromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)
The Interstellar Medium in Galaxies
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PolyAromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)
For my research I use ground based (ALMA, IRAM/NOEMA, VLT, SWIFT) and space based (Spitzer, Herschel and soon JWST) facilities.
I am also interested in future facilities that will come online in the next couple of years/decades. I am currently a member of the HARMONI Science Team (one of the first light instruments of the E-ELT).
In the past I lead a study into ALMA Band 11. I led the European Infrared Space Roadmap and I am a member of the Science Team for the Origins Space Telescope (OST).
My primary interests are on Galaxy Evolution and Star-Formation in Galaxies.
For may years I investigated the physics of the energy source in Luminous Infrared Galaxies near and far. These objects are the `lighthouses' in the Universe as they harbour some of the most extreme sites of star-formation. For my research I use both imaging and spectroscopy, in particular studying the rich mid-and-far infrared spectra of star-forming galaxies.
I am interested in spectral signatures that allow us to study how star-formation proceeds, investigate the presence of an AGN and how the two phenomena co-exist and often interact in the same galaxy.
Dust is an integral part of my studies as the most actively star-forming sites in a galaxy are often hidden from our view by copious amounts of dust.
The Far-Infrared Spectroscopic Explorer (FIRSPEX)
I am the principal Investigator of a new concept for a space mission to study the lifecycle of the ISM in the Universe, starting from our own Galaxy, nearby and distant galaxies. The FIRSPEX concept has been submitted in response to ESA's M5 call for proposals.
TEACHING
I teach both graduate Astrophysics and undergraduate Physics courses.
At present I head the Astrophysics Practical Course for 3rd year Physics undergrads.
Tracing Star Formation Activity with JWST
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Tracing the exact rate of star formation in galaxies and how this evolves with time and galaxy mass has significant implications for how galaxies form. The mid-infrared (3-19 microns) spectrum of star-forming galaxies is dominated by strong emission features often associated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). In many galaxies, the emission of young stars and active galactic nuclei (AGN) is almost entirely absorbed by dust and re-emitted in the infrared. Therefore, PAH emission can be used to study the properties of the ionizing source and measure the star-forming activity in galaxies and AGN.
Powerful Starbursts under the microscope
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Spatially resolved observations of high redshift galaxies are revealing a large diversity in their dynamical properties, ranging from orderly rotating disks to fully dispersion dominated and merging/interacting systems. Using samples of the most intensely star-forming galaxies in the Universe we will trace their gas kinematics and dynamical properties and investigate the main mechanism that drives their star formation activity. Using VLT-KMOS we will investigate the processes that drove star formation activity during the epoch of massive galaxy formation and determine how stellar mass is assembled at the peak of the cosmic star formation rate density of the Universe.
The Lifecycle of Galaxies
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The ISM carries the `fossil record’ of a galaxy’s past star-forming activity in the form of metal enrichment. Metallicity studies in local and distant galaxies can place strong constraints on galaxy evolution scenarios. Thanks to ALMA we now have access to new sets of far-infrared emission line diagnostics that are not affected by dust extinction and can be used to determine metal abundances. The goal of the project is to establish and test a new set of metallicity indicators paving the way for a complete census of the metal content of galaxies at all redshifts and setting new constraints on galaxy evolution models.
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